Hans Rath - The FIDE Master with a Blitzing Brain
Meet Hans Rath, aka AbelBaumann in the wild online chess jungle — a formidable FIDE Master whose blitz games are as thrilling as a rollercoaster ride without seat belts. Starting modestly in 2017 with a blitz rating shy of 1400, Hans has rocketed to a stunning peak over 2700 by early 2025. Imagine going from chess toddler to grandmaster’s nightmare in less than a decade!
From Pawns to Peak Ratings
Hans’s chess journey reads like an epic saga of rapid growth and relentless grinding. Blitz chess has been his playground, where he has racked up over 1,500 games with an impressive win percentage exceeding 50%. Bullet chess? Oh yes, Hans has dazzled there too, boasting a nearly perfect record with no recorded losses and a peak rating close to 2600. If speed chess were an Olympic sport, Hans would be bringing home gold with lightning-fast checkmates and a flair for recovering from the trickiest positions — boasting a remarkable comeback rate of 87%.
Playing Style & Personality
Known for enduring epic endgames (with an endgame frequency soaring above 84%), Hans’s style combines patience with tactical genius. On average, Hans's wins stretch over 78 moves, proving that this is no hurry-up artist—unless he's blitzing at top speed. He has learned to keep cool, with a tilt factor of only 9. But watch out: when the clock strikes 1 AM, Hans’s brain apparently hits turbo mode.
Opening Wizardry
Hans keeps opponents guessing with a secretive opening repertoire labeled simply as "Top Secret," where he maintains a solid 52% win rate over more than 1,200 games. He’s no one-trick pony — dabbling effectively in variations from the French Defense to the Sicilian Najdorf and the elusive Catalan. Like a magician pulling rabbits out of a hat, Hans knows how to conjure victory from the opening moves.
Anecdote from Recent Battles
Just recently, in a dramatic 60-move blitz battle, Hans executed a textbook checkmate against opponent Chesscolic8, showcasing his mastery in the Sicilian Defense Nyezhmetdinov Rossolimo Fianchetto Variation. Despite occasional setbacks (including a tough loss via checkmate to “StarkAst” earlier the same day), Hans’s resilience is part of his charm — like a chess gladiator who gets knocked down but always comes swinging back stronger.
The Man Behind the Moves
Whether facing old nemeses or fresh challengers, Hans Rath is an unstoppable chess force who thrives under pressure and loves the drama of the battlefield. If you ever find yourself across the board, beware — this FIDE Master is not just playing chess, he's performing an artful blitz symphony, one move at a time.
Hi Hans!
You are playing dynamic, ambitious chess and already possess a strong tactical feel. Let’s build on those strengths while ironing out the few patterns that are costing you half-points.
What’s working well
- Initiative-first mindset. In your win against Gaganjaani you seized the centre and never let go, finishing with the elegant tactic 18…Nxf3 19.Bxf3 Rxf3 .
- Opening variety. You comfortably switch between Queen’s-pawn systems and 1.e4 lines, keeping opponents guessing.
- Calculation. The exchange sac 26…Rxb3! in the Sicilian Dragon game was objectively risky but perfectly calculated and forced resignation.
Recurring issues
- Time-management. Three of your last five losses (e.g. vs Dominic Wisnet) were flagged positions that were still drawable. Even when winning (vs Doubtless_precision) your clock dipped below 5 s several times.
- Conversion technique. In the Caro-Kann loss to Emil Mehraliyev you were never worse until move 41, but drifted, missed simplifications, and got mated. After gaining an advantage you sometimes continue “all-out-attack” instead of consolidating.
- Endgame fundamentals. Two rook-and-pawn endings (vs sacov and DirtyKabab) slipped because basic setups like the Philidor and Lucena were not employed quickly.
Actionable plan
- Add increment. Play one daily 3 + 2 session this week. Train yourself to leave ≥20 s on the clock by move 30.
- 90-second “freeze” after winning material. Ask: “What’s their only counterplay?” Trade queens or return a pawn to kill all tactics.
- Endgame reps. 20 min/day on rook endings. Start with basic drawing methods, then practise winning Lucena vs engine defence.
- French & Caro clean-up. Revisit typical plans in the Advance French and Exchange Caro. Build a mini-repertoire file with 10 main tabiya positions and best plans for each.
- Blunder-check routine. Before releasing your hand, run the “CCT” scan (Checks, Captures, Threats) for both sides.
Micro-highlights to keep you motivated
- Precise dark-square domination in the Catalan vs Matthew Fishbein.
- Technically clean king walk & triangulation in the pawn ending vs Doubtless_precision.
Stats snapshot
Peak Blitz rating: 2732 (2025-03-18)
Hour-by-hour performance:
Win rate by day:
Goals for our next session
- Play 10 games of 3 + 2 with the clock goals above.
- Solve 50 endgame puzzles (rook vs rook + pawn).
- Annotate your two most recent losses, marking where the eval first crossed ±1.0.
- Bring one annotated game you won but felt “messy” for us to clean up together.
Keep the energy and creativity, Hans – with a little structure in the critical moments you’ll punch through the 2700 blitz barrier soon!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| montes1414 | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| agatonsrb | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| alexc | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| pawnographic2 | 0W / 0L / 1D | |
| schepetnov_egor | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| precise_calculation | 2W / 3L / 0D | |
| strat15 | 2W / 0L / 0D | |
| arkhipenko_daniil | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| sml60 | 2W / 2L / 0D | |
| tytypapa | 0W / 2L / 0D | |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vladimir Okhotnik | 6W / 4L / 2D | |
| siegfriedkunisch | 4W / 7L / 0D | |
| Vasco D’agama | 7W / 2L / 2D | |
| Jakob Pfreundt | 2W / 8L / 0D | |
| Richard Bitoon | 6W / 3L / 1D | |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2600 | 2589 | ||
| 2024 | 2577 | 2610 | ||
| 2023 | 2485 | |||
| 2022 | 2145 | |||
| 2017 | 2256 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 535W / 390L / 97D | 480W / 437L / 113D | 86.4 |
| 2024 | 47W / 30L / 3D | 39W / 29L / 10D | 84.3 |
| 2023 | 17W / 6L / 4D | 15W / 10L / 3D | 86.7 |
| 2022 | 0W / 1L / 0D | 0W / 0L / 0D | 56.0 |
| 2017 | 34W / 15L / 2D | 39W / 11L / 2D | 69.1 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caro-Kann Defense | 110 | 62 | 39 | 9 | 56.4% |
| Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation | 103 | 56 | 41 | 6 | 54.4% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 77 | 37 | 31 | 9 | 48.0% |
| Italian Game: Two Knights Defense | 58 | 26 | 22 | 10 | 44.8% |
| French Defense: Burn Variation | 53 | 37 | 12 | 4 | 69.8% |
| Sicilian Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack, Fianchetto Variation | 49 | 26 | 21 | 2 | 53.1% |
| Sicilian Defense | 48 | 28 | 17 | 3 | 58.3% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 45 | 23 | 19 | 3 | 51.1% |
| Blackburne Shilling Gambit | 45 | 20 | 20 | 5 | 44.4% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 44 | 21 | 17 | 6 | 47.7% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Indian Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Hromádka Variation | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Ruy Lopez: Exchange Variation, Alapin Gambit | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Giuoco Piano: Tarrasch Variation | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Ruy Lopez: Exchange Variation | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 10 | 0 |
| Losing | 9 | 1 |