Overview
Anton Sitnikov is an International Master and a blitz specialist known online as ChessWind85. A fast thinker with a taste for long endgames, Anton rose to a peak blitz performance in early 2026 and prefers the white first move e4 when he can choose. He combines practical opening choices with stubborn endgame play and a knack for dramatic comebacks.
- Title: International Master
- Preferred time control: Blitz
- Peak blitz performance: 2382 (2026-01-31)
- Notable recent form: an 8 game winning streak at one point and a healthy comeback rate of about 69 percent
Playing Style
Anton plays like someone who enjoys long tactical fights even in fast time controls. His games tend to be long for blitz, with average decisive games lasting around 73 moves. He is comfortable in endgames and reaches them often. Opponents beware - he keeps fighting and has a strong comeback ability when behind.
- Avg moves per decisive game - around 73
- Endgame frequency - high
- Comeback rate - about 69 percent
- Best time of day to play him - around 11:00
Openings and Repertoire
Anton handles both sides of the board with a pragmatic mix of mainstream and offbeat lines. His white repertoire favors closed Sicilian structures after e4, while as Black he reliably plays the Slav and Czech setups.
- Favorite first move: e4
- Strong with White: Sicilian Defense - Closed systems yield excellent results for him
- Strong with Black: Slav Defense and Czech Defense
- Also plays and studies: Caro-Kann Defense and Philidor Defense
Notable opening stats in blitz - perfect runs in some closed Sicilian lines and excellent results in Slav and Czech setups. He has struggled sometimes with Alapin variations of the Sicilian.
Memorable Games
Anton has a habit of turning small advantages into long, grinding wins. For a quick taste of his style see a recent game against a familiar opponent on a late March evening.
- Quick sample game: Quick Endgame
- Replay a short illustrative sequence:
Head-to-Head and Tendencies
Anton has faced many regular opponents online. He is especially strong against players rated below him and converts that advantage reliably. Against familiar rivals he has mixed results, with a few repeat opponents such as capturebishopg7 and alex-1983-kmc where he scored clean wins.
- Overall blitz record in the dataset: 26 wins, 20 losses, 4 draws
- Most played opponents include tourollioulaise, gaddamer and knoppers100
- Check habits: tends to be first to check about 62 percent of the time; the rook is his most frequent checking piece
Fun Facts
Anton is not just a machine of moves. He is the sort of player who will keep you on the board for 80 moves while sipping coffee if you let him. He has a small tilt factor, but his one-sided losses are rare which suggests he rarely resigns early.
- Nickname idea: "The Endgame Comet"
- Favored hour for peak performance: 11:00
- Known for long, accurate endgame play and stubborn defense
Want to Explore More?
Follow Anton's games and study his typical paths in closed Sicilian and Slav structures. For a quick dive, use the embedded chart and game links above to watch recent trends and a representative game. Search terms to explore his lines further include Sicilian Defense and Slav Defense.