Richard Rapport
GM
Oyuncu bilgileri
Richard Rapport is a Hungarian chess grandmaster and one of the most distinctive players of his generation. He became Hungary’s youngest-ever grandmaster before the age of 14, later won the Hungarian Championship, and reached the absolute elite with a peak classical rating of 2776 and a top-five world ranking in 2022. His biggest cycle achievement came the same year, when he qualified for the Candidates through the FIDE Grand Prix. Rapport’s profile is unusual even by super-grandmaster standards: he is known for original openings, offbeat move orders, and a willingness to take strategically rich positions into unexplored territory. After representing Romania for a period, he returned to the Hungarian federation, and by April 2026 he remained in the world top 20 with a 2729 classical rating. Even when his tournament results fluctuate, he remains one of the hardest elite players to prepare for because his chess rarely follows predictable patterns.
Oyun tarzı
Rapport’s style is creative, asymmetrical, and difficult to reduce to standard labels. He is willing to enter strange positions very early, often by sidestepping the most fashionable theory and forcing the game into structures where originality matters more than memorization. At the same time, his strongest years have shown that he is not just an entertainer: behind the unusual openings sits a serious positional player with a strong feel for initiative, piece activity, and dynamic balance.
En iyi oyunlar
- 2017vs Magnus CarlsenTata Steel MastersBeating the world champion in Wijk aan Zee was one of the earliest signature wins of Rapport’s elite career. It showed that his unconventional style could work not only in opens and side events, but also against the strongest opposition in classical chess.
- 2022vs Dmitry AndreikinFIDE Grand Prix Belgrade, FinalRapport won the second game of the final and took the Belgrade leg title. That result was central to his 2022 Grand Prix campaign and helped secure his place in the Candidates Tournament.
- 2024vs Magnus CarlsenFIDE World Rapid & Blitz Team ChampionshipRapport’s 23-move win over Carlsen was one of the sharpest headline results of the event. It is a strong modern addition because it captured his style perfectly: original, direct, and immediately dangerous from the opening.
- 2025vs M. Amin TabatabaeiFIDE Grand Swiss, Round 10This late win kept Rapport in the fight deep into one of the most important Swiss events of the cycle. It belongs here as a fresh high-value result from a tournament packed with Candidates-level opposition.
Açılış repertuvarı
Rapport’s repertoire is one of the most individual in top-level chess. The database picture is very clear: with White, he regularly avoids narrow main-line identity and instead mixes Trompowsky, Nimzowitsch-Larsen, Réti / King’s Indian Attack, and other flexible systems. With Black, his most repeated families include the Old Indian, Pirc, French Winawer, Caro-Kann, and select Sicilian lines.
- Trompowsky Attacktypically after 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5.
- Nimzowitsch-Larsen Attackusually beginning with 1.b3.
- Réti / King’s Indian Attack setupsoften from 1.Nf3 followed by a flexible kingside structure.
- Closed Siciliana recurring anti-Sicilian choice after 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3.
- Old Indian Defenseflexible queen’s-pawn structures beginning with 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 d6.
- Pirc Defenseusually 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6.
- French Defense: Winawer structuresafter 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4.
- Caro-Kann Defensebeginning with 1.e4 c6.
Kariyer öne çıkanları
- Hungary’s youngest-ever grandmaster.
- Hungarian Champion2017.
- FIDE Grand Prix Belgrade winner2022.
- Candidates qualifierreached the 2022 Candidates Tournament through the Grand Prix.
- Peak FIDE classical rating2776 in April 2022.
- Peak world rankingNo. 5 in May 2022.
Kariyer öne çıkanları
- Hungary’s youngest-ever grandmaster.
- Hungarian Champion2017.
- FIDE Grand Prix Belgrade winner2022.
- Candidates qualifierreached the 2022 Candidates Tournament through the Grand Prix.
- Peak FIDE classical rating2776 in April 2022.
- Peak world rankingNo. 5 in May 2022.