American Chess Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky Dies at 29
Chess grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky, who started out as a child prodigy and quickly became one of the most influential American voices in the sport, died Monday. He was 29 years old.
The Charlotte Chess Center in North Carolina, where Naroditsky trained and worked as a coach, announced his death on social media, calling him “a talented chess player, educator, and beloved member of the chess community.”
“Let us remember Daniel for his passion and love for the game of chess and for the joy and inspiration he brought us every day,” his family said in a statement shared by the center.
The cause of death was not immediately known.
At the age of 18, Naroditsky became a grandmaster, the highest title in chess other than the World Chess Championship.
Years earlier, the California-born player had won the Under-12 world championship and spent his teenage years writing chess strategy books as he rose through the world rankings.
He has consistently ranked in the top 200 worldwide in traditional chess and has also excelled in a fast-paced style called blitz chess, maintaining a top 25 ranking throughout his adult career. Naroditsky, known to many as Danya, most recently won the U.S. National Blitz Championship in August.
Other grandmasters credited Naroditsky with introducing the sport to a wider audience by livestreaming many of his matches and sharing live commentary on others. Thousands of people regularly tuned into YouTube and the interactive streaming platform Twitch to watch Naroditsky play.
“He loved broadcasting and trying to be educational. The chess world is very grateful,” American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura said live on Monday.
Released on his YouTube channel on Friday, “Did You Think I Was Gone!?” In the latest video, titled , Naroditsky tells viewers that after taking a creative break from streaming, he’s “back better than ever.” He talks to viewers about his moves while playing live chess matches on the computer in a cozy home studio.
Other elite chess players from around the world expressed their surprise and sadness on social media.
Dutch chess grandmaster Benjamin Bok expressed his lifelong friendship with Naroditsky, whom he said he has known since Naroditsky won the Under-12 world championship in 2007.
“I still can’t believe it and I don’t want to believe it,” Bok told
Naroditsky was the son of Jewish immigrants to the United States from Ukraine and Azerbaijan. He was born and raised in San Mateo County, California, and was described by his parents as a very serious child with an impressive attention span and memory. He went on to study history at Stanford University and earned a bachelor’s degree in 2019 after taking a year off to play in chess tournaments.
After college, he moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he coached some of the region’s best young chess players.
