Arkadij Naiditsch is a Chess Grandmaster from Azerbaijan with Elo ratings exceeding 2500 from FIDE, making him one of the best Azerbaijani chess players of all time.

Full Name: Arkadij Naiditsch

Title: International Master (1999)

Place of birth: Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union

Born: October 25, 1985

Federation: Azerbaijan

Ratings

World ranking: 81

Rapid: 2590

Blitz: 2497

Classical: 2666

Profiles

• FIDE
• Chessgames.com

Biography

Arkadij Naiditsch was born on September 3, 1983 in Riga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union. Naiditsch earned the International Master title in 1999. Initially, Latvia was Naiditsch’s home country before settling in Germany. In April 2001, he became Germany’s top competitor as well as its junior-most Grandmaster while aged 15 years- some days less than the standard age Robert James Fischer earned his title. In 2015, Naiditsch put pen to paper to represent Azerbaijani in chess tournaments and had in the past played for Latvia until 2005 and Germany from 2005 to 2015. In 2013, Naiditsch achieved the highest standard rating of 2737 which still stands out to date and made him rank 18th globally while his FIDE rating as of August 2022, stood at 2666. Arkadij Naiditsch got married to Yuliya Shvayger- the Ukrainian- Israeli chess player and are blessed with kids with whom they reside in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The Beginning

Naiditsch kickstarted his chess career on a high note by winning the U10 European Tournament in Verdun in 1995. In 2002, he leveled points with previous Candidates’ victor Jan Timman in an eight-competition match in Dortmund. At the 2005 Dortmund Sparkassen Championship, Naiditsch emerged victorious beating top-rated and famous competitors like Loek Van Wely, Vladimir Kramnik, Peter Leko, Veselin Topalov, and Michael Adams among others. Naiditsch triumphed in 2007 at the German National Tournament played in Bad Konigshofen.

The International Master title holder progressed with his strive for success in chess and it did not take long before he won the 15th International Neckar Open in 2011 with a score of 8.5 points out of 9 games. The performance helped him to surpass the Elo rating line of 2700. Naiditsch competed on the first board in the European Team Chess Tournament held in Porto Carras, Germany, and became a gold medalist while playing for the German squad. The tournament allowed Naiditsch to gain better experience and identify his best tactics for trouncing his opponents. Naiditsch placed first in the International Neckar Open in 2013, scoring 7 points out of 9 games. the same year also, his team Liburnija from Rijeka won the Croatian League and thereafter Naiditsch played for Germany at the 2013 World Team Tournament assisting his squad to achieve seventh place.

The 2013 Tata Chess Tournament approached thick and fast and the tournament was scheduled to take place in Wijk aan Zee. In the event, Naiditsch beat his closest opponent Richard Rapport in deciding set to win the Grandmaster Group B of the Tata Steel Chess Championship, after both opponents had initially scored 9 points out of 13 games. The victory earned him the chance to advance for the Tata Steel Group A scheduled for 2014, the tournament was later relabeled Tata Steel Maters. The 41st Chess Olympiad took place in August 2014 in Tromso, Germany, for which he triumphed Global victor Magnus Carlsen while playing with black pieces on the first board for German’s national squad.

Furthermore, in September that year, Naiditsch earned victory at the second Grenke Chess Classic Championship played in Baden-Baden. Naiditsch had been scheduled to compete in December that same year at the 38th Zurich Christmas Open. The Grenke Chess Classic championship to him was a foundation stone for it helped him earn a victory in the 38th Zurich Christmas Open. In the first month of 2015, Naiditsch shared first to fifth with notable opponents including Alexander Donchenko, Mathias Dann, Eduardo Iturrizaga, and Milos Pavlovic at the Masters category of the Basel Chess Festival. Naiditsch achieved victory in that tournament on the most competitive tiebreak result. Naiditsch shared 1st place with Magnus Carlsen at the third Grenke Chess Classic in February 2015 coming the second 2nd after a 5-game blitz deciding set which concluded with an Armageddon tournament.

Naiditsch changed to Azerbaijani Chess confederacy in July 2015. On December 30th, 2015 Naiditsch won for the 2nd successive year the Zurich Christmas Open. Naiditsch triumphed at the Basel Chess Festival for the 2nd year consecutively after the successful switch to Azerbaijani six days earlier.

Moreover, Arkadij Naiditsch played in some of the tournaments in 2021 and 2022 which include;

1. TCh-AUT 2nd Mitte 2021-22 held on October 1st, 2021 in Austria.
2. TCh-HUN 2021-22 held on October 10th, 2021 in Hungary
3. 55th Biel Chess Festival held on July 14th, 2022 in Switzerland
4. 55th Biel GM Blitz held on July 17th, 2022 in Switzerland.

Notable Achievements

• Won the Under-10 European Tournament in Verdun in 1995.
• Won in 2005 the Dortmund Sparkassen tournament held in Dortmund, Germany.
• Emerged victorious in the German National Tournament held in Bad Konigshofen in 2007.
• Earned victory at the 15th International Neckar Open in 2011.
• Helped the German squad become gold medalists at the European Team Chess Tournament in Porto Carras in 2011.
• Won over elite player Magnus Carlsen in the 41st Chess Olympiad in Tromso, Northern Norway in 2014.

Noteable Tournaments

• The Bundesliga 2010/11 – took place in Hamburg, Emsdetten, Trier, and Munich on 11th-12th December 2010.
• The 2007 Baku Chess Festival- took place in Baku Crystal Hall, Baku, Azerbaijan in 2007.
• The Tata Steel Group B – held at Wijk aan Zee Netherlands in January 2007.
• The Bundesliga 2007/08 – held in Germany in 2007
• The Bundesliga 2016/17 – held in Germany in 2011
• The Bundesliga 2011/12 – held in Germany in 2011
• The Bundesliga 2014/15 – held in Germany in 2014
• The Bundesliga 2017/18 – held in Germany in 2017
• The Bundesliga 2012/13 – took place in Germany in 2012
• The Corus Group B – took place in the De Moriaan Community Centre, Wijk aan Zee the Netherlands from January 11th-22nd 2003.
• The Bundesliga 2013/14 – took place in Germany in 2013.
• The Ordix Open – took place at Hilton Hotel in Mainz, Germany in 2008.
• The Biel – held in Biel Switzerland.
• The Bundesliga 2008/09 – held in Bundesliga in 2008.
• The Bundesliga 2009/10 – held in Bundesliga in 2009.

Did you enjoy reading about Arkadij Naiditsch? If you did, you might be interesting in reading other player profiles such as Hans Niemann, Bobby Fischer, and Rey Enigma.

Sources

1. https://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/07/crosswords/chess/naiditsch-ranked-the-lowest-takes-top-honors-in-dortmund.html
2. http://reports.chessdom.com/news-2011/naiditsch-neckar-open
3. http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=8806
4. http://en.chessbase.com/post/tata-steel-2014-starts-tomorrow
5. http://www.chess-results.com/tnr156525.aspx?lan=1&art=1&rd=7&wi=821
6. https://chess24.com/en/read/news/grenke-classic-carlsen-wins-armageddon
7. http://www.chessdom.com/arkadij-naiditsch-wins-another-trophy-in-switzerland/
8. http://www.chessdom.com/gm-arkadij-naiditsch-wins-basel-chess-festival-2016/
9. https://chess24.com/en/read/news/naiditsch-i-m-not-afraid-of-anybody