Meet Maxim Meleshchuk, known online as maximsm, a chess enthusiast whose journey through the 64 squares has been as colorful as a well-stacked pawn chain. Beginning with humble ratings around 1000 in the 2010s, Maxim quickly hit impressive peaks—his Rapid rating soared to a personal best of 1344 back in July 2014, showcasing a flair for quicker-paced battles that few novices manage to muster.
Maxim’s style is a curious blend of perseverance and unyielding spirit. He might not always win, but he’s never boring! With a tactical comeback rate nearing 70%, he’s a fighter who keeps dragging games out of the fire—think of him as a chess superhero who refuses to quit, even when pieces are lost. His losses sometimes hang like a cloud though; a 16-game losing streak reminds us all that even the best have rough patches.
Playing mostly Daily and Blitz games, Maxim enjoys the strategic depth of slower games but also dives headfirst into the adrenaline rush of blitz battles. His openings repertoire is a rich tapestry—while the Queen's Pawn Opening Chigorin Variation boasts his only perfect 100% win rate in Daily encounters (albeit from a single game), he also experiments widely, from the Kings Pawn Leonardis Variation to the Nimzowitsch Larsen Attack, proving he’s not afraid to dabble in the unknown.
Psychologically, Maxim plays best around 1 PM, and beware if you catch him playing at 5 AM—he wins a solid 70% of the time then, a likely result of both early bird energy and opponents’ sleepy blunders. He tends to resign early less than 10% of the time, preferring to battle on (or at least try to).
One of Maxim’s recent highlights includes a neatly timed win using the Queen's Pawn Opening - Chigorin Variation, outplaying opponent 360Evan on January 9, 2025, with a clever endgame maneuver culminating in a win on time. That’s classic Maxim—strategic, patient, and opportunistic.
Not all battles end in glory, though. Some opponents, like mycowan, have proven particularly challenging, handing Maxim tough losses that serve as both humbling lessons and fuel for future rematches.
Maxim Meleshchuk might not yet be grandmaster material, but his passion for chess, willingness to explore a wide range of openings, and resilient fighting spirit make him an engaging player to watch—and perhaps the unluckiest streakbreaker the chess world never knew it needed!
