Every three months, the World Chess Federation publishes new rankings. On the current list, which was released on Tuesday, there were 102 grandmasters and one master - Vladimir Afromeev of Russia, who was No. 78.

Afromeev first popped up on the list two years ago. Given his background, that was something of a surprise. Afromeev is 54 years old. Eight years ago, he was not close to being among