August 2024 FIDE Ratings: Gukesh Back To 6th, Vaishali Breaks 2500

For the first time, GM Vaishali Rameshbabu has broken the 2500 barrier officially, with an 11th place on the August 2024 FIDE rating list. FIDE World Championship contender GM Gukesh Dommaraju returned to being the sixth highest-rated player in the world.

Gukesh first reached sixth place on the May list after his grandiose victory at the FIDE Candidates and is now back to that spot thanks to a modest rating gain of three points at the Superbet Chess Classic in Bucharest. The young Indian player switched places with GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who lost seven points in that tournament.

We see a seven-point gain for both Wijk aan Zee winner GM Wei Yi, scored in the Chinese league, and GM Alireza Firouzja, whose good tournament in Bucharest got him back into the top 10. GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu dropped to 12th place after losing eight points over a total of 18 games in Bucharest and Biel. GM Liem Le won Biel for a third year in a row, gained 10 points, and set a new career-best rating of 2741. 

The biggest gain among the top 100 players this month was scored by 2021 Wijk aan Zee winner GM Jorden van Foreest. A former 2700 grandmaster, the Dutchman bounced back from a period of bad form and a rating drop to 2664 back in May.

He's now at 2696 after gaining 25 points in two tournaments in Quebec, Canada: the Canadian Open and the Maplewood Invitational. The biggest loss (17 points) was for GM Yu Yangyi, based on 13 Chinese and Turkish league games.

Among the young talents it's worth noting that the 15-year-old Turkish GM Ediz Gurel broke the 2600 barrier for the first time with a 2602 rating on this list. Even more special is IM Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus, just 13 years old and now with a rating of 2599, just three points lower than his compatriot's after gaining 23 points in the Turkish league.

FIDE Standard Ratings | August 1, 2024

Data courtesy of FIDE.

Although she wasn't active in July, it's worth mentioning that GM Tan Zhongyi is still sitting on a career-high rating of 2545, not bad at all at age 33! It was Vaishali's 18-point rating gain from Biel that stood out the most though.

Vaishali broke 2500 for the first time and is very close to entering the women's top 10, while also having surpassed her compatriot GM Harika Dronavalli, who still gained 11 points herself in the Turkish League.

It was a particularly good month for Polish IM Klaudia Kulon, who won a whopping 36 points in one list based on three open tournaments to reach a career-best rating of 2415. IM Nurgyul Salimova, on the other hand, lost 37 points at the Baku Open and the Turkish League.

Meanwhile, two girls born in 2011 had a good month. China's Qinxuanyi Wang won 28 points to reach a 2177 rating, while Serbia's WFM Vera Vujovic gained 40 points to reach 2175. Arguably the world's biggest talent, Bodhana Sivanandan of England, is still four years younger but won 75(!) points on this list to get to 2185. She will only turn 10 in March next year...

FIDE Standard Ratings (Women) | August 1, 2024

Data courtesy FIDE.