GMPavel Eljanov

Pavel Eljanov was born in Kharkiv in 1983 into a family involved in chess. His mother taught him the rules, while his father, International Master Vladimir Eljanov, supported his training. He worked with Anatoliy Astrakhantsev before studying more independently with fellow Ukrainian players. When his father began publishing Mark Dvoretsky's books, Pavel and Alexander Moiseenko checked variations and repeatedly worked through the manuscripts. He also studied law, graduating from the Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University.

FIDE awarded Eljanov the grandmaster title in 2001. He helped Ukraine win two Olympiad team gold medals and earned an individual silver. His tournament victories include Corus B in 2007, Bosna in Sarajevo in 2009 and the Astrakhan Grand Prix in 2010. At the 2015 World Cup, he began with six consecutive wins and reached the semifinals. He has also worked as a second for Boris Gelfand, Magnus Carlsen and Mariya Muzychuk during their world-championship campaigns. In interviews, he credited working with Gelfand with changing his approach to professional preparation. By 2023 he was working in Sharjah as a coach for Saleh Salem.