English Chess Forum

Just added to the FIDE Rating List: Anish Sarkar, aged 3 years 8 months and 19 days.

Paul McKeown wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 3:53 pm

Just added to the FIDE Rating List: Anish Sarkar, aged 3 years 8 months and 19 days.

1555 !

I am tempted to quote Victor Meldrew

Paul McKeown wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 3:53 pm

Just added to the FIDE Rating List: Anish Sarkar, aged 3 years 8 months and 19 days.

Presumably he kept a game score. Our son represented his primary school in a tournament when he was three and played respectable games, but writing the moves would have been an issue.

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 4:02 pm

Paul McKeown wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 3:53 pm

Just added to the FIDE Rating List: Anish Sarkar, aged 3 years 8 months and 19 days.

Presumably he kept a game score.

He could have got an assistant to do that. The question for the arbiter is whether the reason counts as a "disability" within the rules.

Ian Thompson wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 5:10 pm

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 4:02 pm

Paul McKeown wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 3:53 pm

Just added to the FIDE Rating List: Anish Sarkar, aged 3 years 8 months and 19 days.

Presumably he kept a game score.

He could have got an assistant to do that. The question for the arbiter is whether the reason counts as a "disability" within the rules.

I had to ask a world schools organiser once about a 5 year old English player who wasn't confident notating and was told that he must do so to the best of his ability.

A five year old may be barely literate, less likely for someone who is three and a half.

Matt Mackenzie wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 01, 2024 7:08 pm

A five year old may be barely literate, less likely for someone who is three and a half.

It's not so much literacy as being physically able to write.

I found the great thing about teaching chess to very young children is that they are capable of quite deep ideas but are not so good at expressing them. Moving differently shaped lumps of wood around is an early skill - in today's world, of course, touchscreens work really well!

At Watford, our youngest player will be 5 early next year. She has played only 8 classical games so far (plus, of course, a larger number of rapidplay games) which isn't enough for a rating - she'll likely get one at the end of November - but keeping score hasn't been much of a problem. Getting anywhere near a 1555 rating may be more difficult.

There is plenty in the Indian Press about Anish.

For example see https://www.dynamitenews.com/story/kolk ... in-history

Neil Graham wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 03, 2024 12:09 pm

There is plenty in the Indian Press about Anish.

For example see https://www.dynamitenews.com/story/kolk ... in-history

He's a veteran compared to this player: https://www.etvbharat.com/en/bharat/ind ... vaUCoWpNZA

LawrenceCooper wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 02, 2025 4:05 pm

He's a veteran compared to this player: https://www.etvbharat.com/en/bharat/ind ... vaUCoWpNZA

Maybe relevant to this is the following from Shaun Press (QC Secretary) on his blog today:

I received a request to certify a player as the youngest ever player to get a rapid rating. 'Nope, not doing it' was basically my reply, as (a) this is something FIDE does not do and (b) such records are exploitative.