Chess: Top-Rated Women in the World

The No. 1 female chessplayer in the world is still GM Judit Polgar. Actions speak louder than words - and Polgar has amply demonstrated how difficult it is to maintain an elite chess rating while also trying to be a full-time mom. For the first time in a long time, Polgar has dropped below 2700 ELO on the combined ratings list (that is, men and women). In the January, 2009 FIDE reporting period, she dropped from 27th on the list (I remember as if it was yesterday when she was one of the top 10 players in the world) to 36th, and her ELO is currently 2693. Say what!?! Unbelievable. I never thought I'd see JP below 2700 or out of the top 20 players in the world. Don't get me wrong, darlings! Her rating is not mince-meat! But given her recent performances and the continued decline in her overall standing on the FIDE list relative to other players, can she still be considered an "elite" player - one of the so-called "super" GMs? Here are the other women who, in the world of female chessplayers, are the elite. To make the top 100 in the world, one needs an ELO of 2634. Of the elite female players other than Judith Polgar, only Koneru Humpy is close: 1 Polgar, Judit g HUN 2693 8 1976 2 Koneru, Humpy g IND 2621 6 1987 3 Hou, Yifan wg CHN 2571 15 1994 4 Stefanova, Antoaneta g BUL 2557 25 1979 5 Cramling, Pia g SWE 2548 15 1963 6 Muzychuk, Anna m SLO 2540 36 1990 7 Sebag, Marie g FRA 2529 15 1986 8 Dzagnidze, Nana g GEO 2518 26 1987 9 Chiburdanidze, Maia g GEO 2516 14 1961 10 Kosteniuk, Alexandra g RUS 2516 8 1984 11 Zhao, Xue g CHN 2508 16 1985 12 Arakhamia-Grant, Ketevan m SCO 2500 32 1968 13 Ushenina, Anna m UKR 2499 32 1985 14 Kosintseva, Tatiana m RUS 2497 25 1986 15 Cmilyte, Viktorija m LTU 2497 24 1983 16 Danielian, Elina m ARM 2496 18 1978 17 Ruan, Lufei wg CHN 2496 0 1987 18 Zhu, Chen g QAT 2496 0 1976 19 Zhukova, Natalia wg UKR 2490 16 1979 20 Lahno, Kateryna g UKR 2488 15 1989