Meet hristomladenov
hristomladenov is a chess addict with a bullet problem, and by "problem" I mean a peak bullet rating of 2374. They have played thousands of online games, with the Caro-Kann Defense as their comfort blanket and the clock as their true opponent. If you see them queue up at midnight, just know that their win rate at 00:00 is a perfect 100 percent. Small sample size, but who cares.
Humble Beginnings
Every legend starts somewhere, and hristomladenov started in 2013 with a blitz rating that once touched 492. Yes, 492. From those ashes they climbed, year after year, until the rating graph started looking like a ski jump. By 2026 they were knocking on the door of 2200 in bullet and 2100 in blitz, which is a long way from the days of triple-digit despair.
Opening Repertoire
As White, hristomladenov is a creature of habit: 1.e4, almost always. They love the Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation against the Sicilian, the Scandinavian Defense when Black tries to grab the center early, and the gloriously weird Dresden Opening: The Goblin when they are feeling spicy. As Black, the Caro-Kann Defense is the main course, served in over a thousand bullet games with a healthy win rate. They have also faced the Amar Gambit more than 400 times as Black, which suggests they attract chaos.
Rivalries
Every hero needs a nemesis, and for hristomladenov that nemesis is Svetlen Ivanov. The two have battled 82 times, and the head-to-head is brutally one-sided: 63 losses for hristomladenov. That is the kind of rivalry that builds character, or at least builds a very long losing streak. Their longest losing streak was 17 games, but their longest winning streak was 16, so the universe is roughly balanced.
Numbers and Quirks
- Over 8,000 rated bullet games, with nearly 4,800 wins.
- Peak bullet rating: 2374 (2026-01-17).
- Comeback rate of 83.47 percent, meaning they are dangerous when behind.
- They win 51.14 percent of games even after losing a piece, which is either resilience or stubbornness.
- Their most common checking piece is the queen, because of course it is.
Charts and Highlights
Signature Setup
If you want to know what hristomladenov does on move one, here is a typical Alapin-style start: