International Master Mykola Bortnyk
Mykola Bortnyk, also known online as Mykola-Bortnyk, is an International Master recognized by FIDE, who effortlessly combines precocious talent with a hearty dash of competitive spirit. A ruthless tactician on the chessboard, Mykola’s games can sometimes feel like an intense thriller — full of sharp moves, daring risks, and a few hair-raising comebacks.
Rating & Performance Highlights
- Peak Ratings: Bullet - 3250 (2021), Blitz - 3147 (Jan 2025), Rapid - 3004 (Dec 2021)
- Current Ratings (2025): Blitz - above 3100, Bullet - above 3100, Rapid - around 3000
With a blitz rating surging past 3100 and bullet rating in the stratosphere, Mykola shows an exceptional skill to dominate quick-paced formats, even while sometimes engaging in epic battles that last hundreds of moves.
Playing Style & Strengths
With an average game length of 88 moves per win and nearly 98 per loss, Mykola doesn't just play chess; they **live** it — embracing complex endgames and lengthy encounters. Their endgame frequency is impressively high, at over 87%, showcasing their prowess when the board is down to the wire.
A particular highlight is an extraordinary psychological resilience: Mykola has a comeback rate nearing 88%, meaning they often bounce back to claim victory even after losing material. Their best time of day to play optimism peaks around 16:00, when their moves probably flow with divine inspiration.
Opening Repertoire
Known for a mixture of classical and "Top Secret" openings, Mykola shines especially with the Italian Game Knight Attack Polerio Kieseritzky Variation boasting nearly 88% win rate, and they make great use of solid defenses like the Caro-Kann and French Defense. Their flexibility is evident, but they particularly enjoy surprising opponents in fast bullet duels!
Worth Noting
- Mykola’s competitive record is prolific: over 7,600 wins in blitz alone.
- They have an intriguingly low early resignation rate (0.44%), meaning they rarely give up early — chess battles to the last breath are their style.
- Beware the white pieces! Mykola’s white win rate is nearly 53%, slightly edging out black.
- Longest winning streak: 31 games — because once on a roll, they are a force to reckon with.
Recent Notable Victory
In a recent classical-style battle in 2025 against "0gZPanda," Mykola demonstrated mastery in the Caro-Kann Defense Advance variation, clinching victory by resignation after a thrilling 69-move fight. If chess had a highlight reel, this game would be center stage for strategic perseverance and endgame flair!
View the game details
In essence, Mykola Bortnyk is the kind of chess shark who'd probably make you believe knights are actually ninjas and pawns are secret agents—always plotting their way to glory.
Feedback for Mykola Bortnyk
Dear Mykola,
I've reviewed your recent games, and I want to commend you on several strengths and also highlight areas to focus on to further improve your play.
Strengths:
- Opening Repertoire and Preparation: Your choice of openings such as the Colle System, Caro-Kann Panov Attack, and defensive setups shows good variety and understanding of structural plans. Your games suggest solid opening preparation and the ability to reach comfortable middlegame positions.
- Endgame Technique: In your recent wins, you showcased clean technique converting slight advantages and executing mating nets effectively, for example, precise rook and queen coordination in final phases demonstrates good calculation skills and tactical awareness.
- Active Piece Play: You tend to activate your pieces well and challenge your opponents' weaknesses. Moves like timely pressure on pins, central control, and piece exchanges favoring your plan are well timed.
Areas for Improvement:
- Time Management: In some games, the clock shows considerable time spent in the opening and middlegame. Managing your time to maintain a comfortable buffer, especially in critical moments, will reduce pressure and improve decision quality.
- Handling Complex Positions: A few losses indicate moments where defensive resources were missed or better counterplay could have been found. Training on recognizing key defensive moves and simplifying when under pressure can help mitigate this.
- Pawn Structure and Exchanges: Occasionally, small pawn structure concessions or premature exchanges gave your opponent easier play. Be mindful of the consequences of exchanges on the pawn skeleton and try to maintain tension when beneficial.
- Endgame Precision Under Pressure: While your endgame technique is solid, some losses show that against strong opposition, being even more precise in rook and minor piece endgames is critical. Reviewing key endgame studies could bolster your confidence here.
Next Steps:
- Analyze critical moments and turning points in your losses using the PGNs to understand alternatives.
- Practice time management drills in rapid games to find balance between accuracy and speed.
- Review thematic endgames that occur from your favored openings and practice technique.
- Consider focusing on the pawn structures of your chosen openings and typical plans to improve strategic understanding.
Keep up the good work and continue playing strong! Your recent performances show great potential and with focused study, you can take your game to the next level.
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| kairos-23 | 12W / 4L / 1D | View |
| James Mortimer | 7W / 2L / 1D | View |
| Aditya Mittal | 13W / 7L / 4D | View |
| Dariusz Swiercz | 23W / 23L / 4D | View |
| Nacer Alvarez | 3W / 1L / 1D | View |
| Elham Amar | 33W / 22L / 8D | View |
| Tanitoluwa Adewumi | 41W / 13L / 5D | View |
| Ray Robson | 40W / 52L / 11D | View |
| Szymon Gumularz | 6W / 13L / 3D | View |
| Arman Mikaelyan | 18W / 3L / 5D | View |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| Daniel Naroditsky | 1058W / 2255L / 422D | View Games |
| Oleksandr Bortnyk | 179W / 274L / 52D | View Games |
| Tuan Minh Le | 181W / 218L / 48D | View Games |
| Hikaru Nakamura | 60W / 333L / 45D | View Games |
| Brandon Jacobson | 168W / 186L / 48D | View Games |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3020 | 3189 | ||
| 2024 | 3023 | 2984 | 2602 | |
| 2023 | 3045 | 3054 | 2627 | |
| 2022 | 2872 | 2940 | 2446 | |
| 2021 | 3055 | 3009 | 2516 | |
| 2020 | 3007 | 2883 | 1904 | |
| 2019 | 2768 | 2832 | ||
| 2018 | 2804 | 2840 | 1804 | |
| 2017 | 2816 | 2788 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1009W / 704L / 135D | 856W / 804L / 185D | 90.9 |
| 2024 | 927W / 636L / 154D | 850W / 687L / 173D | 98.6 |
| 2023 | 1826W / 1156L / 284D | 1606W / 1329L / 323D | 94.2 |
| 2022 | 903W / 841L / 184D | 822W / 885L / 209D | 97.9 |
| 2021 | 612W / 359L / 109D | 549W / 415L / 108D | 93.4 |
| 2020 | 1010W / 852L / 203D | 913W / 948L / 208D | 97.3 |
| 2019 | 462W / 362L / 101D | 430W / 423L / 85D | 91.8 |
| 2018 | 796W / 512L / 116D | 671W / 594L / 124D | 92.6 |
| 2017 | 416W / 280L / 63D | 383W / 314L / 68D | 94.7 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 1803 | 1017 | 597 | 189 | 56.4% |
| Alekhine Defense | 1240 | 681 | 453 | 106 | 54.9% |
| Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation | 745 | 371 | 295 | 79 | 49.8% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 436 | 214 | 168 | 54 | 49.1% |
| Modern | 382 | 180 | 159 | 43 | 47.1% |
| Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation | 363 | 205 | 119 | 39 | 56.5% |
| Amazon Attack | 334 | 138 | 153 | 43 | 41.3% |
| Barnes Defense | 299 | 143 | 120 | 36 | 47.8% |
| Sicilian Defense | 278 | 132 | 120 | 26 | 47.5% |
| Unknown | 271 | 134 | 136 | 1 | 49.5% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alekhine Defense | 1389 | 756 | 543 | 90 | 54.4% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 993 | 562 | 375 | 56 | 56.6% |
| Modern | 838 | 402 | 375 | 61 | 48.0% |
| Scandinavian Defense | 570 | 325 | 200 | 45 | 57.0% |
| Amar Gambit | 555 | 276 | 246 | 33 | 49.7% |
| Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation | 535 | 272 | 215 | 48 | 50.8% |
| Nimzo-Larsen Attack | 503 | 219 | 243 | 41 | 43.5% |
| King's Indian Attack | 493 | 202 | 257 | 34 | 41.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation | 443 | 242 | 173 | 28 | 54.6% |
| Barnes Defense | 354 | 217 | 117 | 20 | 61.3% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alekhine Defense | 30 | 29 | 1 | 0 | 96.7% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 11 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 72.7% |
| Alekhine Defense: Modern Variation | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 66.7% |
| Evans Gambit Accepted, 5.c3 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 80.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 80.0% |
| Petrov's Defense | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 75.0% |
| Barnes Defense | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Amazon Attack | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 66.7% |
| French Defense: MacCutcheon Variation, Wolf Gambit | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Evans Gambit: 5...Ba5 6.d4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 31 | 4 |
| Losing | 23 | 0 |