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simbleautoday at 12:51 AM3 repliesview on HN

Is there really a decline with age when it comes to chess? I’m not sure he will really decline until he reaches his retirement age.


Replies

traestoday at 1:35 AM

For some concrete numbers, there are only four players over 50 years of age in the top 100 at the moment by live ratings[0]. They are ranked #13 (age 56), #89 (age 53), #95 (age 54), and #97 (age 57). In their primes these players were ranked #1, #10, #4, and #3 respectively.

[0]: https://2700chess.com/?per-page=100

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Trufatoday at 1:01 AM

There's a sharp decline with age. Magnus himself says he's not as sharp as he was younger, even if he can compensate with experience.

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jacquesmtoday at 1:35 AM

For most people there is a cognitive decline with age, and chess is clearly a cognitive effort. Like with everything else: experience really matters, but you will simply be a bit less sharp over time and in a game where a tiny mistake can compound to a loss it really matters.