Over The Board Chess
- Grandmaster (shortened as GM, sometimes International Grandmaster or IGM is used) is awarded to world-class chess masters. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain. Before FIDE will confer the title on a player, the player must have an Elo chess rating (see below) of at least 2500 at one time and three favorable results (called norms) in tournaments involving other Grandmasters, including some from countries other than the applicant's. There are also other milestones a player can achieve to attain the title, such as winning the World Junior Championship.
- International Master (shortened as IM). The conditions are similar to GM, but less demanding. The minimum rating for the IM title is 2400.
- FIDE Master (shortened as FM). The usual way for a player to qualify for the FIDE Master title is by achieving a FIDE Rating of 2300 or more.
- Candidate Master (shortened as CM). Similar to FM, but with a FIDE Rating of at least 2200.
All the titles are open to men and women. Separate women-only titles, such as Woman Grandmaster (WGM), are also available. Beginning with Nona Gaprindashvili in 1978, a number of women have earned the GM title, and most of the top ten women in 2006 hold the unrestricted GM title.
Other titles for players not as strong also exist, such as Chess expert. The USCF currently gives a national title for achieving five norms of that level. The titles are the following: (note these are national titles and are not recognized by FIDE)
- Life Senior Master: 2400
- Life Master: 2200
- Candidate Master: 2000
- 1st Category: 1800 (note 1st Category Titles and lower do not require the listed rating)
- 2nd Category: 1600
- 3rd Category: 1400
- 4th Category: 1200
Read more about this topic: Chess Title
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