Hikaru Nakamura

Since the advent of published FIDE Blitz ratings, Nakamura has graced the top of the list, demonstrating inimitable acuity and speed. In 2015, the American GM won the Gibraltar Chess Masters tournament, captured his fourth U.S. Championship, first place at the Millionaire Chess Open, and propelled his classical FIDE rating to a career high of 2814. 2016 also proved to be a fruitful year for Naka as he repeated first place finishes at the Gibraltar Chess Festival and the Zurich Chess Challenge. In 2017, Hikaru won his third consecutive Gibraltar Chess Festival. and he won the 2018 Grand Chess Tour. This year, Naka regained his title of U.S. Champion, defeating a field with four other 2700+ players. Hikaru has performed well at previous Champions’ Showdowns, taking out Peter Svidler in last year’s Chess 960 event and soundly defeating Jan Duda earlier this year.