Arjun Officially Joins Carlsen, Caruana, Nakamura In 2800 Club

GM Arjun Erigaisi became the 16th player in history to break the 2800 Elo barrier in standard chess ratings and only the second Indian player to do so after GM Viswanathan Anand. With 2801, Arjun is the world number-four on the December 2024 FIDE rating list behind GMs Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, and Hikaru Nakamura. 

In reality we're talking about a modest 1.9-point gain for Arjun compared to the November list, but since everyone likes round numbers, those 1.9 points gained at the Chennai Masters mattered. Rounded off for the December list to 2801, the 21-year-old GM from Warangal, Telangana, is now officially a 2800 player, after previously crossing that mark on the live rating list in October.  

🇮🇳 Arjun Erigaisi has become the 16th player in history to break the 2800 Elo barrier in classical chess ratings!@ArjunErigaisi joins five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand as the second Indian to achieve this milestone. In the December 2024 #FIDERating list, his rating… pic.twitter.com/fBZKDoVoiC

— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) December 1, 2024

Arjun earlier told Chess.com, "To be honest, I stopped caring about the ratings and rankings. I don’t really care that much about being in the top-five either."

To be honest, I stopped caring about the ratings and rankings.

—Arjun Erigaisi

It's not going to be easy to maintain such a sky-high rating, and already starting from tomorrow, Arjun will be put to the test again. He'll be the top seed at the Qatar Masters where he'll be playing among the likes of GMs Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Parham Maghsoodloo.

Arjun and Abdusattorov are playing for FIDE Circuit points and a spot in the next FIDE Candidates Tournament, as is Caruana, whose 3.4-point rating gain in the U.S. Masters came too late for the December FIDE rating list.

Congratulations to @FabianoCaruana on winning the US Masters! His 17.11 FIDE Circuit points have left him less than 1 point behind @ArjunErigaisi — with Caruana now playing the St. Louis Masters, starting tomorrow (!) while Arjun plays the Qatar Masters! https://t.co/oLjyn2XPdl pic.twitter.com/tvN7filDdF

— chess24 (@chess24com) December 2, 2024

Caruana now switches straight to playing the Saint Louis Masters. 

Meanwhile, GM Levon Aronian is once again knocking on the door of the world's top 10 after a good tournament in Chennai as well. The American-Armenian grandmaster scored 4.5/7 and won 8.4 rating points which puts him in 11th place now. In the same event, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave lost 6.3 points which put him just outside of the top 20 again.

FIDE Standard Ratings | December 1, 2024

In the women's list, the players aren't so close with their ratings and so similar rating gains or losses have smaller effects. GM Tan Zhongyi gained 10 points at the FIDE Women's Grand Prix in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, but remained in third place behind her compatriots GM Hou Yifan and Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun.

From games played at the same event, GM Aleksandra Goryachkina gained 18 points and traded places with GM Humpy Koneru, who lost seven. GM Kateryna Lagno lost 12 points, but only dropped one place.

The biggest loss in the women's top 100 was for GM Elisabeth Paehtz, whose -26 points (also in Shymkent) saw her drop outside the world's top 30. 22-year-old Canadian WGM Maili-Jade Ouellet, meanwhile, gained 34 points in a single tournament: the Fall 2024 Charlotte Alto GM Norm Invitational. Dutch IM Eline Roebers bounced back with a 25-point gain.

FIDE Standard Ratings (Women) | December 1, 2024

All data courtesy of FIDE.