Daniel Naroditsky Dies At 29, All About The Grandmaster, From Family Life To Chess Championships

Daniel Naroditsky, had established his name in the world of chess championships and was a Grandmaster. Populary known as Danya, he had also worn the hats of author, commentator, and content creator. In a shocking turn of events, Daniel's family announced that he had passed away on October 19, 2925. After this unexpected tragic news, condolences have been pouring for the chess star from around the world. Here's everything to know about the legacy that Daniel Naroditsky has left behind. 

Daniel Naroditsky learned chess at six years old and was the youngest player to win a K-12 Chess Championship

Daniel was born on November 9, 1995 in San Mateo, California. After initially learning how to play chess from his father, Daniel started to seriously train for the game. As a result, he won the Northern California K–12 Chess Championship 2007 and made a record of being the youngest victor ever. Then he won second place at the U.S. Open 2010 which led him towards the U.S. Championship 2011. 

Daniel Naroditsky was awarded with the title of Grandmaster at the age of 18

From 2011 to 2013, Danile won three grandmaster norms. The first at the Benasque Open, then in the Philadelphia Open, followed by another in the 2013 Benasque Open. In the same year, Daniel was finally awarded the Grandmaster title. He was just eighteen years old at the time. Following this, Daniel participated in many other chess championships and always made it to the top 200 in the world as per International Chess Federation (FIDE) ratings. 

Daniel Naroditsky's controversy and other ventures

Daniel Naroditsky was also a Twitch streamer and YouTube content creator, apart from a Grandmaster. His content revolved around chess. Daniel often played the game on Chess.com and Lichess.com. He was ranked very high frequently on both the website's leaderboard. The Grandmaster also used to educate his subscribers about chess through these streams. Apart from that, Daniel had written three books on the game and was also a frequent collaborator to The New York Times' chess puzzle section. 

In 2024, Daniel got into a controversy when he was accused of cheating in online chess by World Champion and Russian Grandmaster, Vladimir Kramnik. Daniel, who was known for not holding back and being upfront, called the Russian Grandmaster 'worse than dirt'. 

Daniel Naroditsky's family announced his untimely death 

Daniel's family shared an official statment with Charlotte Chess Center. For the unversed, Daniel was a member of this chess club. The official statement read:

"The Naroditsky family shares the sad news of Daniel’s unexpected passing. Daniel was a talented chess player, educator, and beloved member of the chess community. We ask for privacy as the family grieves."

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Daniel Naroditsky's cause of death and tributes from chess fraternity

Daniel's cause of death has not been revealed yet. However, there are a lot of speculations going on especially since fans have pointed out that the chess star was seen having a 'mental break' in his last stream. Russian Grandmaster, Vladimir Kramnik also posted a screenshot of a text on his X account that he had received from someone after Daniel's last stream on twitch. The texts showed concerned about Daniel and said that it looked like he was on some substance. Amid fans and some colleagues suspecting foul play and official confirmation on the cause of death is awaited. 

Many of Daniel's fellow Grandmasters have paid tribute to the departed soul. GM Srinath Narayanan wrote, "Lost for words. So young, so brilliant. The word ‘tragic’ doesn’t even begin to describe the emotion felt.” GM Hikaru Nakamura stated, "I’m devastated. This is a massive loss for the world of chess.” RB Ramesh wrote:

“Deepest condolences to Danya’s family and friends. Cannot believe such a nice human being is not among us anymore. Have had the honour of working with him during the covid. He was extremely kind, courteous, extremely talented and generous. We will all miss you Danya."

Condolences to the loved ones of Daniel 'Danya' Naroditsky. 

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