Ding Liren
Ding Liren (Chinese: 丁立人; pinyin: Dīng Lìrén; born 24 October 1992) is a Chinese chess grandmaster and the reigning World Chess Champion. He is the highest-rated Chinese chess player in history and also a three-time Chinese Chess Champion. He was the winner of the 2019 Grand Chess Tour, beating Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the finals and winning the 2019 Sinquefield Cup. Ding is the first Chinese player ever to play in a Candidates Tournament and pass the 2800 Elo mark on the FIDE world rankings. In July 2016, with a Blitz rating of 2875, he was the highest-rated Blitz player in the world. In July 2023, Ding became the No. 1 ranked Rapid player, with a rating of 2830.
| Ding Liren | |
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Ding in 2023 | |
| Country | China |
| Born | 24 October 1992 Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China |
| Title | Grandmaster (2009) |
| World Champion | 2023–present |
| FIDE rating | 2762 (February 2024) |
| Peak rating | 2816 (November 2018) |
| Ranking | No. 4 (February 2024) |
| Peak ranking | No. 2 (November 2021) |
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| Chinese | 丁立人 | ||||||||||||
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Ding was undefeated in classical chess from August 2017 to November 2018, recording 29 victories and 71 draws. This 100-game unbeaten streak was the longest in top-level chess history, until Magnus Carlsen surpassed it in 2019. Ding came second in the Candidates Tournament 2022: this qualified him for the World Chess Championship 2023 against Ian Nepomniachtchi, as Carlsen declined to defend his title. Ding won, making him World Chess Champion, by defeating Nepomniachtchi 2½ to 1½ in the rapid tie breaks after their 7–7 tie in classical chess.