The world’s top 10 chess rankings remained unchanged last month, but the completion of the Qatar Open and several other open tournaments brought notable shifts in the lower echelons.

The final days of 2024 were dominated by the Rapid and Blitz Championships, where new World Champions were crowned.

Biggest gains in top 100 Open and Women

Anna Shukhman became the player to achieve the biggest progress in December following her excellent performance in the V elllobregat Open and XI Sunway Sitges International held in Barcelona. The 15-year-old WIM picked up an impressive 120 points making her debut in the Women’s top 100.

Photo: Maria Emelianova

After a three-month hiatus, WGM Xiao Yiyi returned to classical chess at the 2024 Chinese Chess League Division Final (Knockout), where she earned 40 points, reclaiming her spot in the Women’s top 100.

India’s Vantika Agrawal rebounded from summer rating losses and has been steadily improving since fall. Her consistent form continued in December, with a 19-point gain in the 3rd International President Cup and the Qatar Open. Her compatriot, Murali Karthikeyan, also overperformed in these events, making his first appearance in the Open top 100.

Photo: Anna Shtourman

Andrey Esipenko (pictured above), the winner of December’s strongest classical tournament, gained 17 rating points, bringing him close to the elite 2700 threshold. Armenia’s Shant Sargsyan, who tied for fourth place in the same event, achieved his career-high ranking of 66th in the Open top 100.

IM Padmini Rout did very well on the American soil. Her good results in the US Masters and Saint Louis Masters translated into 17 ratings points.

Photo: Federación Española de Ajedrez

Gawain Jones emerged victorious at the 2024 XTX Markets London Chess Classic and 15 points to his rating, while the newly crowned Spanish Champion Daniil Yuffa (pictured above) increased his rating by 14 poitns, reaching his career high of 2654.

Rapid and Blitz shake-ups

Unlike standard rating lists, the rapid and blitz lists saw significant movements following the Rapid and Blitz Championships in New York.

In the top 10 Open Rapid seven players, including the #1 Magnus Carlsen lost significant rating points, allowing the co-champion Ian Nepomniachtchi to climb to the third position.

Photo: Michal Walusza

Several players made significant strides in the top 100 Rapid Open, including the new champion Volodar Murzin (+50), Sam Sevian (+30) and Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara (+29).

In the Blitz Open, players who tied for first place in the qualifying stage got substantial gains. Notable beneficiaries include Hans Niemann (+20) and co-champion Ian Nepomniachtchi (+16). The exception was Fabiano Caruana, who dropped 16 points after losing his quarterfinal match.

The standout performer in New York was Afruza Khamdamova (pictured below). The 15-year-old U16 World Youth Champion from Uzbekistan tied for third in the Rapid competition (finishing seventh on tiebreak), earning an extraordinary 218 rating points. This remarkable achievement catapulted her to 20th position in the Women’s Rapid list.

Photo: Michal Walusza

The women’s rapid top players also excelled in New York. Humpy Koneru claimed her second World Rapid title, gaining 15 points, while bronze medalist Kateryna Lagno added 28 points.

Other women notable rating gains include Harika Dronavalli (+17), Irine Kharisma Sukandar (+21), Turmunkh Munkhzul (+24), Dinara Wagner (+39), Anastasia Bodnaruk (+27), Amina Kairbekova (+24), and Khanim Balajayeva (+44).

Ironically, World Blitz Champion Ju Wenjun lost six rating points, while runner-up Lei Tingjie gained only two.

Photo: Michal Walusza

In contrast, many participants saw substantial gains of 30+ points in the Women’s Blitz category, including: Vaishali R (+37) who qualified for the knockout stage in the first place, Dinara Vagner (+33), Elisabeth Paehtz (+34), Teodora Injac (+106!), Aleksandra Maltsevskaya (+35), Song Yuxin (+52), Janelle Mae Frayna (+44), Megan Althea Paragua (+59), Bat-Erdene Mungunzul +60), Gulnar Mammadova (+38), Afruza Khamdamova (+40), Inga Charkhalashvili (+34) and Jennifer Yu (+37).