Format
BO
Bambela, Onako
🇿🇦FIDE 14382199· Male· South Africa· Born in 2009
Follow Onako BambelaTrack his monthly FIDE ratings, games, tournaments and more.
Onako Bambela, a 17-year-old South African player, is rated 1657 — just 9 short of his peak of 1666 (Apr 2026, age 17). He is on a steady climb with +53 Elo over the past 12 months. 37 rated games in the past year. Recent standard appearances include EC Open 2026 (U16-U20 Boys), 2026 Buffalo City Chess Trials 2 (U18 Boys), and 2026 Buffalo City Chess Trials 3 (U18).
At junior level, he reached #67 and #47 nationally in U18 and U16.
Current rating
1657
Standard
Rpd—·Blz—
All-time high
1666
−9 pts below
Apr 2026 · age 17
Apr 2026 · age 17
Activity
37
games / yr avg. · ≈3/mo
37 past 12 mo · ≈3/mo
classical only
Active
classical only
Active
Signature stat
#125,162
#125,162 · players worldwide · of 216,808
Career timeline
9 entries2026
67th South African U18 player
at age 17 · rated 1666
Apr 2026
Best 12-month gain (+62 Elo)
1604 → 1666
Apr 2026
All-time peak 1666
at age 17 · −9 from today
Apr 2026
2025
47th South African U16 player
at age 16 · rated 1642
Nov 2025
Re-crossed 1600
at age 16
Oct 2025
Crossed 1600
at age 16
Jun 2025
Standard rating history
Last 12 months — activity & highlights
Top opponent
Evolution
+53
1604 → 1657
Tournaments
9
52 games
Score
31/ 5259.6%
27W16D9L
Top 3 wins
2.[W]vsMark Maroba1,687·2025 Mzansi Inter Provincial Team Championships (U18 Open Championship)·R2·+22.6
3.[W]vsPalo Mwelwa1,657·2025 Mzansi Inter Provincial Team Championships (U18 Open Championship)·R6·+20.9
Top 3 losses
1.[L]vsIzaiah Solomon1,546·2025 Mzansi Inter Provincial Team Championships (U18 Open Championship)·R3·-25.3
2.[L]vsJacobus Beyers1,605·2025 Mzansi Inter Provincial Team Championships (U18 Open Championship)·R1·-22.1
Last 12 months — tournaments
9 events| Event | Date | Score | Rank | Perf | Δ Elo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Swiss | Apr 2026 | 4.5/5 | #14 | 1938 | -9.2 |
Swiss | Feb 2026 | 3/1 | #7 | 2365 | -4.4 |
Swiss | Feb 2026 | 4.5/3 | #1 | 2382 | +27.6 |
Swiss | Feb 2026 | 4/1 | #12 | 2417 | -4.4 |
Open Swiss | Dec 2025 | 3.5/3 | #27 | 2395 | +12.4 |
Rankings
/
South Africa
#667
out of 1,842 players
Africa
#4,927
in continent
World
#125,156
out of 400,000+
National ranking
Europe & World
Europe
World
South Africa
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World
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