Bu Xiangzhi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bu Xiangzhi |
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| Country | China |
| Born | December 10, 1985 Qingdao, Shandong, China |
| Title | Grandmaster (1999) |
| FIDE rating | 2705 (August 2025) |
| Peak rating | 2731 (February 2019) |
| Peak ranking | No. 22 (April 2008) |
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| Chinese | 卜祥志 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Bu Xiangzhi (Chinese: 卜祥志; pinyin: Bǔ Xiángzhì) was born on December 10, 1985. He is a famous Chinese chess player. In 1999, he became the 10th grandmaster from China. He earned this title at the age of 13 years, 10 months, and 13 days, making him the youngest grandmaster in history at that time.
Bu Xiangzhi became the Chinese chess champion in 2004. He was also a key member of the Chinese team that won gold medals at the 2015 World Team Chess Championship and the 2018 Chess Olympiad. In April 2008, Bu and Ni Hua were the second and third Chinese players to reach an Elo rating of over 2700, following Wang Yue.
Contents
Bu Xiangzhi's Chess Journey
Starting Chess
Bu Xiangzhi was born in Qingdao, China. When he was six years old, his older cousin taught him how to play chess. His interest grew even more when his fellow Chinese player, Xie Jun, won the women's world championship in 1991.
He started taking chess very seriously at age nine and received special training. Around this time, a local newspaper, Qingdao Daily, started a chess club. Many children, including Bu, joined this club. His first chess book was a translated version of My 60 Memorable Games by Bobby Fischer, a player Bu admired. By 1993, he had already won the Qingdao Junior Chess Championship.
Early Wins and World Titles
In 1997, Bu became the children's champion of the National S.T. Lee Cup. The next year, at just 12 years old, he won two big titles: national pupil champion and under-14 world champion. In 1999, he placed seventh in the important Tan Chin Nam Grandmaster Invitational Tournament.
Becoming the Youngest Grandmaster
In 1999, a company from his hometown, Qingdao, sponsored Bu Xiangzhi. This allowed him and his coach to travel to Europe for several international chess tournaments. To become a Grandmaster (GM), a player needs to achieve three "norms" (high-level results in strong tournaments).
Bu achieved all three norms in just two months! He won tournaments in Paks, Hungary, and Budapest, Hungary. He also tied for first place in the Qingdao Daily Cup. He was 13 years, 10 months, and 13 days old when he earned his final norm. This made him the youngest person ever to become a Grandmaster at that time. He held this record until July 2002, when Sergey Karjakin became a GM at an even younger age. In 1999, Bu also won the German Open.
Chess Achievements: 2000-2007
In 2000, Bu Xiangzhi won the International Neckar Open in Germany. That same year, he played against another young talent, Teimour Radjabov, in an eight-game match in New York. Bu won the match 6+1⁄2-1½.
In December 2003, Bu won the 10th Aceimar International Open in Spain. In November 2004, he became the National Chess Champion of China in Lanzhou.
In 2006, Bu won the 9th World University Chess Championship in Nigeria. He tied with Ni Hua but won on a tiebreak. In July 2007, he won the Canadian Open Chess Championship. Later that year, in October 2007, he won the Blindfold Chess World Cup in Bilbao. In this tournament, he beat many strong Grandmasters, including Veselin Topalov and Magnus Carlsen.
Chess Achievements: 2008
In January 2008, Bu tied for first place at the 6th Gibtelecom Chess Festival in Gibraltar. He had a great performance but lost in a quick blitz play-off. In April 2008, he played in the Russian Team Championships.
Bu also played in his first "super-tournament" in Sofia, Bulgaria, called the M-Tel Masters. In August 2008, he won the Inventi Grandmaster Tournament in Antwerp, Belgium. In September 2008, he played in the 5th Russia v China Match in Ningbo. In October, Bu won the men's rapid individual tournament at the 2008 World Mind Sports Games. In December 2008, he finished third at the Pearl Spring chess tournament in Nanjing.
Chess Achievements: 2010
In January 2010, Bu Xiangzhi played well at the Moscow Open. He then finished 10th at the 2010 Aeroflot Open. After this, he qualified for the 2010 World Blitz Championship.
From May to June 2010, Bu played in the Chinese Chess Championship. He was close to winning his second Chinese championship but drew his final game. This allowed Wang Hao to win on a tiebreak.
In June 2010, Bu participated in the 1st Danzhou Tournament in China. He won the tournament on a tiebreak. From August 4 to August 15, Bu played in the 7th annual China versus Russia match. He helped the Chinese team win with a very strong performance.
Recent Chess Achievements: 2012-Present
In June 2012, Bu won the 3rd Hainan Danzhou GM tournament. This win helped him join the Chinese team for the 40th Chess Olympiad. In August 2012, he won the World University Chess Championship for the second time in Portugal.
In July 2014, he tied for first place at the 5th Hainan Danzhou tournament. He then won the Politiken Cup in Denmark by a full point. A big moment came in the FIDE World Cup 2017. Bu Xiangzhi won his match against the world champion, Magnus Carlsen, in the third round, which was a huge upset!
In July 2023, he won the 42nd Benasque Open in Spain. In the same month, he also won the Masters Open Tournament at the 2023 Biel Chess Festival. In March 2024, he won the strong Shenzhen Masters event, with important wins against top players like Arjun Erigaisi and Anish Giri.
Playing for the National Team
Bu Xiangzhi has been a regular player for the Chinese national team since 2001. He has achieved great results in team events.
At the World Team Chess Championship in 2005 and the Turin 2006 Chess Olympiad, he played on the top board. He helped his team win silver medals in both events and also won individual silver medals. In Turin, the Chinese team finished second, and Bu played well, drawing games against famous Grandmasters like Vladimir Kramnik and Viswanathan Anand. He also played in the 2002 and 2004 Olympiads.
He was part of the team that won a silver medal at the December 2006 Asian Games. He also won an individual bronze medal and helped the team win gold at the 2008 15th Asian Team Chess Championship.
Bu was a key player when the Chinese team won the gold medal in the World Team Chess Championship in 2015. He was also on the team that won the 43rd Chess Olympiad in 2018. In that event, Bu also won an individual bronze medal.
China Chess League
Bu Xiangzhi plays for the Shandong chess club in the China Chess League (CCL).
Personal Life
Bu Xiangzhi is married to Huang Qian, who is also a chess player and a Woman Grandmaster.
Notable Chess Games
- Bu Xiangzhi vs Krishnan Sasikiran, 2005
- Baadur Jobava vs Bu Xiangzhi, 2006
- Bu Xiangzhi vs Judit Polgar, 2007
- Bu Xiangzhi vs Veselin Topalov, 2008
- Magnus Carlsen vs Bu Xiangzhi, 2017
See also
In Spanish: Bu Xiangzhi para niños
- Chess in China
- Chess prodigy § List of youngest grandmasters
