Carlos Felipe Squella Lavin
Better known online as Atom596, Carlos Felipe Squella Lavin is a FIDE Master with a bullet player's pulse and a marathon runner's patience. His online chess career reads like a love letter to fast time controls, fearless opening choices, and hundreds of games against familiar rivals.
The Road to FIDE Master
Carlos appears in online records from 2020, already competing at a solid level. By June 2025 he had reached a career online blitz high of 2550 (2025-06-25), and his bullet rating soon climbed to 2551 (2025-06-27). Those numbers are more than just points, they reflect a player who simply does not stop. In September 2026 alone he played 551 rated blitz games, enough to wear out most mouse hands.
His longest winning streak of eight games and his extraordinary game volume show a player who treats every online session like a tournament round. The chart below tracks his steady climb in blitz through his most active years.
An Opening Laboratory on Fast Clocks
Carlos has the soul of a system player and the curiosity of an opening explorer. His most frequent white setup is the London Poisoned Pawn Variation, which is practically a standing appointment in his blitz and bullet games. When he plays Black, he gravitates toward the French Defense, testing the Exchange, Advance, Winawer, Tarrasch, and MacCutcheon variations depending on the day. He has also dabbled in the Amazon Attack and the Siberian Attack, often with solid results.
Here is one of the French Advance structures he often reaches, with Black's queen on b6 and both knights ready to join the attack:
Rivalries and Resilience
Every online warrior needs a nemesis. For Carlos, that player is Pavel Sevostianov. The two have faced each other 21 times, with imcoach winning 12, Carlos winning 8, and one draw. Rather than avoid the matchup, Carlos keeps showing up, which says a lot about his competitive spirit. He also holds a winning record against petitpingouin06, another frequent opponent who has shared many late night battles with him.
His statistics reveal a player who fights back. He has a very high comeback rate, wins around 80 percent of his games against lower rated opposition, and tends to play long, complex battles rather than quick blowouts. His average winning game lasts around 77 moves, and he plays his best chess at 21:00.
- Blitz and bullet specialist with more than 2,000 analyzed online games.
- Known for the London Poisoned Pawn Variation, the French Defense, and the occasional Amazon Attack.
- A night owl whose best winning percentage comes at 21:00.
A Bullet Heart with Classical Grit
Although he is clearly comfortable at any speed, Carlos prefers bullet above all. His fastest time control peak is extremely close to his blitz peak, which is rare for players who specialize in slower games. As White he scores noticeably better than as Black, and he is not afraid to go straight into the endgame. His high endgame frequency and long decisive games suggest that even his quick play has a patient, technical side.