Veselin Topalov
Bulgarian chess grandmaster (born 1975) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Veselin Aleksandrov Topalov (pronounced [vɛsɛˈlin toˈpalof]; Bulgarian: Весели́н Алексáндров Топа́лов; born 15 March 1975) is a Bulgarian chess grandmaster and former FIDE World Chess Champion.
Veselin Topalov | |
---|---|
Full name | Veselin Aleksandrov Topalov |
Country | Bulgaria |
Born | (1975-03-15) 15 March 1975 (age 49) Ruse, Bulgaria |
Title | Grandmaster (1992) |
World Champion | 2005–06 (FIDE) |
FIDE rating | 2727 (May 2024) |
Peak rating | 2816 (July 2015) |
Ranking | No. 25 (May 2024) |
Peak ranking | No. 1 (April 2006) |
Topalov became FIDE World Chess Champion by winning the FIDE World Chess Championship 2005. He lost his title in the World Chess Championship 2006 against Vladimir Kramnik. He challenged Viswanathan Anand at the World Chess Championship 2010, losing 6½–5½. He won the 2005 Chess Oscar.[1]
He was ranked world number one from April 2006 to January 2007. He regained the top ranking in October 2008 until January 2010. His peak rating was 2816 in July 2015, placing him joint-tenth on the list of highest FIDE-rated players of all time.
Topalov has competed at nine Chess Olympiads (1994–2000, 2008–2016), winning board one gold in 2014 and scoring best overall performance in 1994. He also won in Linares, Corus, Dortmund, Stavanger and Pearl Spring tournaments.
Topalov is married and has two daughters.[2]