The world-renowned sport of chess is highly competitive, with enthusiasts studying the game for decades to reach heights in the chess community. Although many players remain unheard of, most have intentions of being immortalized for their genius play over the board, similar to the legends like Morphy, Fischer, and Tal.
In recent years, chess has gradually increased in popularity, with thousands of players from all around the world gaining a renewed interest in the game. In this article, we ranked the best Romanian chess players from Romania according to FIDE.
1. Constantin Lupulescu
Title: Grandmaster
Born: March 25, 1984
Place of birth: Buftea, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 87
Rapid: 2628
Blitz: 2549
Classical: 2656
Profiles
While maintaining his position as Romania’s highest-rated player, Lupulescu leads the Romanian national team of chess. After receiving the title of International Master in 2003, Lupulescu worked his way up to gaining the title of Grand Master in 2006. He is a five-time national champion with multiple notable games under his belt, including his draw with World Champion Magnus Carlson, his win against Anish Giri, and his defeat over Alireza Firouzja during the 34th edition of the Reykjavik Open.
2. Bogdan-Daniel Deac
Title: Grandmaster
Born: October 8, 2001
Place of birth: Ramnicu Valcea, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 147
Rapid: 2556
Blitz: 2605
Classical: 2627
Profiles
The origin of Deac’s chess career began after he learned the game at the age of seven. Shortly after, coach Ioan Virlan became his trainer. Bogdan-Daniel Deac garnered his title as both FIDE Master and International Master in the year 2014. At the age of 14 years, seven months, and 27 days, chess prodigy Deac received the title of Grand Master, earning a position on the list of the youngest grandmasters in history.
Deac is Romania’s second highest-rated player, after Lupulescu, and as the world’s fifth highest-rated junior. A few notable achievements of Deac’s games involve Deac drawing against Giri, Wei Yi, So, and Radjabov, and a win against Wei Yi and Grischuk.
3. Mircea-Emilian Parligras
Title: Grandmaster
Born: December 28, 1980
Place of birth: Pitesti, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 282
Rapid: 2580
Blitz: 2461
Classical: 2591
Profiles
Formally ranked as the 103rd highest player worldwide in 2011, Parligras is a two-time Romanian chess champion. In 2002, he became a Grand Master with a rating of 2650. He played as the face of Romania in the Chess Olympiads of 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2008. Noteworthy of Parligras’s games is his wins against Nepomniachtchi, Gunnarsson, and Ding Liren. Parligras dropped to the third-highest rated player in Romania after his FIDE rating decreased to his current rating and his defeat by Deac.
4. Andrei Istratescu
Title: Grandmaster
Born: December 3, 1975
Place of birth: Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 428
Rapid: 2610
Blitz: 2602
Classical: 2553
Profiles
Andrei Istratescu gained his title of Grand Master in 1994, two years after earning the title of International Master. Significantly, he placed 2nd, behind Karpov, in a rapid tournament in 2004. He had played in the Chess Olympiad, the European Team Chess Championship, and the Chess Balkanaiads for Romania. From 2011 to 2017, he played for France.
5. Ioan-Cristian Chirila
Title: Grandmaster
Born: January 6, 1991
Place of birth: Bucharest, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 508
Rapid: 2508
Blitz: 2445
Classical: 2536
Profiles
After his introduction to chess at the age of five, Chirila was a force in youth competitions, taking 1st at several championships in Romania. Chirila was awarded a full-ride scholarship at the University of Texas of Dallas, and he went on to pursue his education while continuing the sport.
After winning the National Open of 2018 in Las Vegas, he graced the cover of Chess Life, a renowned American chess magazine. He held a position in the Romanian team at the 43rd Chess Olympiad. In the 2018 World Championship, Chirila ranked among the seconds of Caruana. He is currently the Head Coach at Bay Area Chess.
6. Levente Vajda
Title: Grandmaster
Born: February 13, 1981
Place of birth: Odorheiu Secuiesc, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 625
Rapid: 2539
Blitz: 2573
Classical: 2534
Profiles
Five years after receiving International Master, Vajda was awarded the title of Grand Master in 2001. Since 1993, he has had many successes in playing for Romania. Today, Vajda streams on twitch under the tag GM Trankulizerr.
7. Marius Manolache
Title: Grandmaster
Born: April 22, 1973
Place of birth: Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 630
Rapid: 2477
Blitz: 2391
Classical: 2533
Profiles
Manolache received International Master in 2001. Six years later, he earned the status of Grand Master. Manolache has won and played many championships in Spain, France, and Romania, with his most powerful win against Tabatabaei.
8. Gergely-Andras-Gyula Szabo
Title: Grandmaster
Born: 1983
Place of birth: Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 646
Rapid: 2510
Blitz: 2515
Classical: 2531
Profiles
In 2001, Szabo became an International Master and a Grand Master in 2010. He holds the tenth spot among Romanian’s highest-rated chess players. Szabo became a chess trainer in 2013 and continues coaching Romanian and Canadian players.
9. Vlad-Cristian Jianu
Title: Grandmaster
Born: September 27, 1984
Place of birth: Bucharest, Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 679
Rapid: 2560
Blitz: 2523
Classical: 2527
Profiles
After winning a 2006 Romanian championship, Jianu obtained the title of Grand Master in 2007. He is a national champion in problem-solving and also played in two chess Olympics for Romania. Jianu has achieved several wins claiming his peak rating of 2588.
10. Vladislav Nevednichy
Title: Grandmaster
Born: September 3, 1969
Place of birth: Romania
Ratings
World Ranking: 764
Rapid: 2459
Blitz: 2374
Classical: 2518
Profiles
After receiving the title of Grand Master in 1993, Nvednichy hit his peak rating of 2542 in May 2011, making him Romania’s 8th highest-rated chess player. He played for Romania in multiple Chess Olympiads. Currently, he is Romania’s 10th highest after his rating dropped and others surpassed him.
That concludes the list of the best Romanian Chess players. If you like list posts like this, you may also be interested in seeing the ten best Maltese Chess players or the best Irish Chess players.