At What Age Do Chess Players Decline?

The document suggests that a player's performance increases significantly until they reach the age of 20, improves gradually until they reach 35, and then begins to decline. This is exemplified by Sergey Karjakin, who became the youngest Grand Master at the age of 12 years and 7 months. The effects of aging on the chess skills of competitive players have been studied for many years. One of the most famous examples of longevity in high-level chess is Vassily Smyslov, who reached the final of the candidate games against Garry Kasparov in 1984. So, if you're a little over 35 and haven't played chess professionally since you were a kid, your age shouldn't be a major concern. Bilalic, Smallbone and McLeod & Gobet (200) analyzed the German database and explained gender differences in chess based on the participation rate hypothesis.

The decline in Gf is offset by the increase in Gc, resulting in a long plateau phase after the peak and a modest decline. Despite not being specifically better at the game as you age, many people still enjoy playing chess as they get older. Many players return to tournament chess in middle age or old age, but experts do so to a much lesser extent. However, it is currently unclear which of the many skills summarized under the label general intelligence constitute chess skill. Of course, today it is not possible to be a world chess champion at 58, as was the case with Wilhelm Steinitz.

However, in terms of absolute playing strength, all of them continued to improve their game even after winning the World Chess Championship. In general, at the first signs of deterioration of mental capacity, mental activities are encouraged and it is considered useful to play chess and other mind games. In addition, we don't know what heights Bobby Fischer could have reached if he hadn't left chess at a young age. The new RI7 model calculates the total life trajectory of an unlimited number of chess players in a single execution with a single function. Consequently, it's no wonder that some people take chess seriously and improve their personal records even in their late 40s and 50s.

There are many aspects to consider when it comes to understanding why players get worse with age, all of which emphasize why it's important to play for as long as possible.