FIDE ELO migration – where are we?

Steven Bellens     21.01.2025

With the general meeting from November 2024 two months in the past, I’d like to take the time to provide a brief overview of where we are in terms of the national ELO system, the plans to migrate to FIDE ELO only, and the changes that have been voted.

Our national ELO system is still functioning as usual

Every 3 months, our national ELO system gets a ranking update. Each tournament organizer can submit games for processing (right now, for the April 1ste update). Everyone (players & tournament organizers) can check the current list of games to be processed on the checklist page. You can filter the page by entering the player name. Alternatively, you can click on any tournament name to view the complete list of games reported in that tournament.

Errors on the checklist page are to be reported, also through ratings@frbe-kbsb-ksb.be before the publication of the next rating list. It is the responsibility of the tournament organizer to ensure correctness and completeness of games in the checklist, and report any errors.

For all questions or remarks regarding our national ELO system, please reach out through  ratings@frbe-kbsb-ksb.be.

FIDE migration intention approved, next steps pending

During the general meeting of November 23rd, 2024, the intention to migrate to FIDE was approved by the majority of clubs.

Do you agree with abolishing the national ELO system in favor of the international FIDE ELO system?

The practical proposal to execute this migration was however rejected. Meaning that your rating officer had to go back to the drawing table to come up with a better proposal to execute this migration. Your rating officer is improving the proposal in order to meet the club demands better. Roughly the main objections can be summarized as:

  1. administration overhead due to tournament registration, per-round reporting and strict reporting deadlines
  2. lack of arbiters
  3. fear of additional costs due to FIDE reporting cost structure

As these objections need a clear answer first – and approval afterwards – there is no set date as to when FIDE migration will be carried out.

So, what changed then right now?

The General Assembly did approve important changes in the way national ELO reporting needs to be carried out:

  1. Tournament announcements: In order to be eligible for national ELO processing, tournaments need to be announced at least 14 days before tournament start. For tournaments where norms can be scored an announcement needs to be made latest 21 days before tournament start (Tournament rules, article 12 b.).
  2. Results submission: Results need to be reported at latest 3 days after the end of the tournament. For tournaments lasting more than 30 days, intermediate results per round need to be reported. (Tournament rules article 12 c.)
  3. Processing deadlines: Reports submitted more than 2 months after the tournament end, will no longer be processed. (Tournament rules article 12 d.)

You can read more about the implementation guidelines on the National ELO rating system information page. These adjustments aim to create a better-structured national ELO system that is fair, transparent, and protects against misuse, such as late submissions. By standardizing timelines, we ensure correct processing for all players. Additionally, these changes are a step towards greater alignment with FIDE ELO processing requirements.

Flexible application due to technical limitations

We are currently facing technical limitations in the regular reporting process. In SWAR, rounds can only be reported if all results for that round are entered, and all previous rounds are fully completed*. To address this, the above rule changes are being applied flexibly while your ranking officer develops new reporting support. You may delay submitting your round report until all results for the round are available and all prior rounds are completed.

*There are technical possibilities to nullify open games, and submit partial round results. These solutions require you to follow-up game reporting manually, and are considered an advanced practice. They are not the first recommended way of reporting for standard users.

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