Page 1 of 2
Mihai Suba
Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2023 2:01 pm
by Paul Heaton
Those of a certain generation will remember GM Mihai Suba, who decamped to this country for a few years from his native Romania, before finally settling in Spain. He was a GM when the title was much rarer than today, and over 2500 when again much rarer.
As Bogdan Lalic has pointed out elsewhere, his FIDE rating is now 1983 - albeit for someone 76 this year.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2023 5:58 pm
by Joey Stewart
Did he have some sort of illness that caused him to drop so low or is that just a result of playing too much in tournaments against underrated scrubs stealing his ratings points over many years?
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2023 6:04 pm
by Tim Spanton
Joey Stewart wrote: ↑Sun Jan 01, 2023 5:58 pm
Did he have some sort of illness that caused him to drop so low or is that just a result of playing too much in tournaments against underrated scrubs stealing his ratings points over many years?
Looking at his rating progress chart
https://ratings.fide.com/profile/1203363/chart it seems to have been a fairly steady decline, albeit accelerating in the last few years
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Sun Jan 01, 2023 6:55 pm
by Matt Mackenzie
Well he was over 2400 as recently as mid-2014, so its a pretty precipitous decline from that point.
And that sort of drop can't really just be explained by un/under-rated opponents. Some sort of ill health?
Another curiosity about him is that he only started playing master level chess in his mid-20s - even back then that was pretty uncommon.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2023 12:34 am
by James Plaskett
He resides in the town of Alfas del Pi, which is about eighty miles due north of me and I play for their club too.
Yes, he did have some serious health scare circa 2014, I believe, necessitating a spell in hospital.
Haven´t seen him around for a few years.
He was rated comfortably above 2500 for several years and defeated many top GMs. His best games contain elements of genius and he even had a huge plus, quite possibly even missing a win, when playing board one for his country against Kasparov as black in a 4 g3 Nimzo in the 1984 Olympiad.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2023 2:49 pm
by Joey Stewart
James Plaskett wrote: ↑Tue Jan 03, 2023 12:34 am
He resides in the town of Alfas del Pi, which is about eighty miles due north of me and I play for their club too.
Yes, he did have some serious health scare circa 2014, I believe, necessitating a spell in hospital.
Haven´t seen him around for a few years.
He was rated comfortably above 2500 for several years and defeated many top GMs. His best games contain elements of genius and he even had a huge plus, quite possibly even missing a win, when playing board one for his country against Kasparov as black in a 4 g3 Nimzo in the 1984 Olympiad.
That is an interesting bit of information and helps explain the rating drop as being though unnatural means rather then the broken system ruining it . And also surprising to find you live in Spain as I'm pretty sure I have never heard you speak any Spanish anywhere so the thought wouldn't have occurred.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2023 3:30 pm
by Matt Mackenzie
Yes he was genuine GM strength at his best, a few *relatively* weak players got the title in that era but he wasn't one of them.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2023 12:41 pm
by Keith Arkell
I think the introduction of the minimum rating of new GMs needing to be 2500, possibly as long ago as the late 70s, put a stop to 'relatively weak players' becoming GMs.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2023 1:46 pm
by Joey Stewart
Now we have almost the opposite situation where relatively strong players are NOT becoming grand masters thanks to the rating system.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 2:25 pm
by Colin Patterson
Another rating decline that is slightly baffling to me is that of Romain Edouard. Still only 32, he is currently playing at Hastings with an Elo of 2537, but was at his peak, 2702. I find that surprising, even if his recent focus has been more on authoring books.
Is it perhaps an example of some players being naturally gifted, while others can only reach the heights through constant hard work and high class prep?
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 4:09 pm
by Tim Spanton
Colin Patterson wrote: ↑Fri Jan 06, 2023 2:25 pm
Another rating decline that is slightly baffling to me is that of Romain Edouard. Still only 32, he is currently playing at Hastings with an Elo of 2537, but was at his peak, 2702. I find that surprising, even if his recent focus has been more on authoring books.
Is it perhaps an example of some players being naturally gifted, while others can only reach the heights through constant hard work and high class prep?
I wish I could be so weak
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 4:35 pm
by Nick Burrows
Colin Patterson wrote: ↑Fri Jan 06, 2023 2:25 pm
Another rating decline that is slightly baffling to me is that of Romain Edouard. Still only 32, he is currently playing at Hastings with an Elo of 2537, but was at his peak, 2702. I find that surprising, even if his recent focus has been more on authoring books.
Is it perhaps an example of some players being naturally gifted, while others can only reach the heights through constant hard work and high class prep?
I would guess it comes down to a relative decline in motivation. You work very hard and push for many years, realise you have peaked and motivation to do other things grows.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 4:44 pm
by Matt Mackenzie
GM's falling from (say) 2650 at their peak to (say) 2500 in a fairly short time is far from unknown.
And yes, one suspects that motivation (or rather an absence of it) is often a factor in such cases.
But for a GM's rating to fall as low as Suba's has is very uncommon - even in old age.
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 5:55 pm
by Matt Bridgeman
Matt Mackenzie wrote: ↑Fri Jan 06, 2023 4:44 pm
GM's falling from (say) 2650 at their peak to (say) 2500 in a fairly short time is far from unknown.
And yes, one suspects that motivation (or rather an absence of it) is often a factor in such cases.
But for a GM's rating to fall as low as Suba's has is very uncommon - even in old age.
I spotted one at the Prague Open currently
- an IM down from 2400 to 1800;
https://ratings.fide.com/profile/14101491/chart
Re: Mihai Suba
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 6:05 pm
by Matt Mackenzie
Seems to have no games prior to 1990 when he had already turned 40, slightly curious.