I'm interested in receiving feedback on the current FIDE title system, especially in regards the number of titles being awarded. At this stage this is a non official request (ie not in my role as Secretary of the FIDE Qualification System) but it may turn out to lead into a more formal review.
One of the main comments I do hear is about the number of (W)GM's/(W)IM's/(W)FM's currently going around, especially compared the the historical origins of the titles. On the other hand, I don't see players who are close to the title hoping that the process is made harder.
One suggestion made to me today was to simply increase the peak rating required to earn a title (ie 2600 instead of 2500 for a GM). Certainly this would be a simple change, but I suspect the players who miss out due to this would be somewhat resentful of the players who beat the deadline.
5 comments:
The last adjustment in 1979 raised the performance levels by 50 points. (There were no minimum ratings need.)
Since then there has been, very roughly, 200 points of inflation with, it is estimated, about 75 due to general improvement 125 to inflation in the system, most of the latter happening in the 80s and 90s. Recent deflation is hard to calculate but is on a far smaller scale.
With this in mind you could safely:
(i) Raise the norm performance levels again, by 25 or 50 points,
and/or
(ii) Raise the minimum rating level for a title by 25 or 50 points, on in stages to reduce unfairness.
Regional zonals and junior tournaments are another matter entirely.
For juniors, you could go back to the system where winners, even of the World Junior, received norms not titles.
Or you could give only a norm, not a title, if a performance is below the normal norm level.
For zonals there are many possibilities, but just raising the minimum level for automatic titles by at least 100 points would be easy - and very necessary for the lower titles give the incoming rating changes.
I propose that FIDE should stop messing around with the title performance requirements.
Instead, I propose that FIDE should add a letter to each title to indicate how it was achieved.
So: by norms and rating requirement, you would have eg GMn, IMn, WGMn, WIMn.
By published rating: FMr, CMr, WFMr, WCMr.
Direct titles would have the letter 'd' (tempting to put 's' for 'soft' but in fact in some regions direct titles are by no means soft!). So GMd (rare); IMd, FMd, CMd etc.
There is definitely a hierarchy but titles would still be valid to qualify others for norms, as before, no matter what the specification.
Players could upgrade, for example from 'd' to 'n' if they achieved the designated norms and rating requirement, or from 'd' to 'r' if they achieved the officially required rating.
And of course this allows FIDE to invent new types of title for added income...
Helen Milligan
"One suggestion made to me today was to simply increase the peak rating required to earn a title (ie 2600 instead of 2500 for a GM). Certainly this would be a simple change, but I suspect the players who miss out due to this would be somewhat resentful of the players who beat the deadline."
I like this suggestion, but would only apply it to the direct titles, ie, a 2200 minimum rating for a direct FM title, etc ... . I think that would reduce the complaints about these titles.
Also, why not bring back the 'Honorary GM' title?
Patrick Byrom
Hi Patrick, the Honorary GM title was dropped a number of years ago. I'm not sure why (before my involvement with QC), but every now and then we still get an application. However one issue with it, is that requests are often based on non chess playing criteria, ie they were a fantastic organiser of events, or they helped develop chess in a country or region. It is probably this subjectivity that makes it a difficult award to judge.
Simplest solution to the number of direct titles being awarded is to reduce the events that award them. Only world level events should have direct titles available. When continental and below events have no direct titles awarded, the number of direct titles would immediately reduce. Obtaining a direct title would then become much tougher than through norms and ratings.
Keong Ang
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