A norm is a single tournament performance at the level required for a FIDE title. The GM and IM titles each require three norms plus a minimum rating.
A norm is proof, delivered in one event, that you can play at title strength. A GM norm requires a performance rating of roughly 2600 over at least nine games; an IM norm requires roughly 2450. One brilliant game proves nothing; a norm demands a whole tournament of that quality.
Not every event can produce norms. FIDE requires the opposition to include titled players and players from multiple federations, with minimum rating levels for the field. That is why dedicated norm round-robins exist: small, carefully composed events built to give rising players legitimate chances.
Three norms, covering at least 27 games in total, plus the rating floor (2500 for GM, 2400 for IM) complete a title. Norms never expire, so players often collect them years apart, and the third norm is a famous psychological hurdle: everyone in the room knows exactly what the last round is worth.
A performance of roughly 2600 strength over at least nine games in a tournament that meets FIDE's conditions on titled and foreign opposition. Three of them, plus a 2500 rating, earn the GM title.
No. Once earned, a norm counts forever, which is why some players complete their three norms across many years and finish the title long after the first one.
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