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Chess grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky has died

431 points by ntnbr 1y ago

perihelions 1y ago
This is shocking, I have no words. The poor guy.
ajiang 1y ago
This makes me so tremendously sad. Danya was one of the biggest blessings to the online chess community.
toomuchtodo 1y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Naroditsky https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Naroditsky
Ataraxic 1y ago
Super out of the blue. I loved his videos and he taught me a lot after I got into chess during covid. rest in peace.
password54321 1y ago
Really good teacher, helped me go from 800 to 1600 in under a year. Used to watch his speedruns a lot. https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM
_dark_matter_ 1y ago
I was wondering why I knew his name - he published a series of chess puzzles based on actual historic games in the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/chess-puzzles https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/chess-puzzles. They were fabulous, and I especially enjoyed his commentary. May he rest in peace.
dak1 1y ago
Danya was such an incredibly positive influence on the chess community, a tremendous teacher whose YouTube content I’m sure will remain popular for years to come, and my personal favorite chess commentator. He was also only 29 years old. I’m actually in tears right now struggling how to break this news to my son, who absolutely loved Danya and had a chance to play him OTB last year.
bongodongobob 1y ago
He was such a great teacher and player. Absolutely loved his videos. He seemed like such a wholesome positive person, this is very sad.
nightfox1 1y ago
RIP the great RebeccaHarris :(
benmmurphy 1y ago
[flagged]
amrrs 1y ago
It's heartbreaking and sad. His video a couple of days back was literally titled "You thought I was gone! Speedrun retruns" The comments on that video was so kind and heartwarming where people wished him well. While we don't know the exact cause, we can all agree that he was subjected to extreme bullying and no one stood up for him - most importantly FIDE!
- CalChris 1y ago
  Kramnick.
  - nomilk 1y ago
    From what I understand, Kramnick pointed out Danya's behaviour was erratic and suspected alcohol or drug use (everyone else broached it much more sensitively, saying drugs was a ridiculous notion, and giving him space/privacy but perhaps suspecting possible mental health, mental breakdown, or maybe narcolepsy). Kramnick may have been forthright and lacking tact, but it was clear from Danya's behaviours that he sadly had an underlying psychological condition that could happen to any of us.
    - monooso 1y ago
      Kramnick repeatedly accused Danya of cheating, which prompted a lot of ongoing abuse from his acolytes. Danya spoke publicly about the stress this caused him several times. Of course, as ever, Kramnick had nothing to back up his claims, a fact which in no way prevented him repeating them ad-nauseum. That's not being "forthright" or "lacking tact". That's being an abusive asshole.
      - nomilk 1y ago
        I hadn't follow closely enough and wasn't aware - thanks for pointing out. Kramnick accuses Danya of cheating (several pieces of circumstantial 'evidence' in the thread): https://x.com/VBkramnik/status/1911179469773033512 https://x.com/VBkramnik/status/1911179469773033512 A tweet by IM Kostya Kavutskiy of ChessDojo from November 2024 (paraphrased): > Our intention was to express concern for what's going on. Many of us supported Kramnik's fight against online cheating for some time. > But then he started naming players left & right, some of whom were likely 100% innocent, who got their name dragged through the mud regardless. Kramnik also started naming actual children at one point, without any real evidence from what I could tell > And it's not "just asking questions", it's casting aspersions. And the words of any world champion obviously carry a lot of responsibility. https://x.com/hellokostya/status/1852388806143390131 https://x.com/hellokostya/status/1852388806143390131
mathattack 1y ago
Several years ago he taught kids locally in the Bay Area. Very sad to see someone go that's so young.
sexyman48 1y ago
If life could be measured in potential moves considered, he lived several lifetimes. Sad to see such a force of nature expire so soon. Condolences to the Russian chick and their kid.
- heartbreak 1y ago
  > Condolences to the Russian chick and their kid. The statement from CCC doesn’t mention him having a kid. Pretty sure he did not have one.
atannen 1y ago
Ouch. Danya was a great player (world rank 151, USA rank 17). Popular player, teacher, streamer and chess event commentator. Studied at Stanford. The NY Times' current chess columnist. About to turn 30 years old.
mellosouls 1y ago
This is terrible news if true; so young and such a positive voice and influence. One of the best live commentators, and among a generation of savvy chess influencers he seemed particularly sincere and without motivation beyond love of the game and communicating it's brilliance to others. RIP GM Danya
- perihelions 1y ago
  > "if true" To swiftly terminate that thread, it is not a hoax; his North Carolina friend Oleksandr Bortnyk confirmed it on his video stream.
colechristensen 1y ago
I'm shocked, he was a great teacher and seemed like the nicest dude of all the chess streamers out there. https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM/videos https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM/videos https://www.twitch.tv/gmnaroditsky https://www.twitch.tv/gmnaroditsky https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/12/crosswords/chess-columnist-naroditsky.html https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/12/crosswords/chess-columnis...
mokkol 1y ago
I can't believe this. Yesterday I saw his last educational speedrun[0]. He was such a great positive dude and I really enjoyed his content. He will be missed! [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rqPeGKVPbA&t=1834s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rqPeGKVPbA&t=1834s I would love to donate some to his family if anybody has a link to share.
- underdeserver 1y ago
  Are you sure? I think the statement said he was a son.
  - mokkol 1y ago
    You are right, sorry about that. I can't read today. I deleted that part.
vrnvu 1y ago
Shocking to hear this news. I used to watch Danya's videos a lot... RIP
srge 1y ago
He was such a great guy. Wholesome. What a loss.
RandomBacon 1y ago
Regarding the flagged/dead comment that links to concern about Daniel Naroditsky's health a few days ago, I don't think burrying our heads in the sand is correct approach now. It might have been wise to respect his privacy and not talk about him publicly and while he was alive and could read it, but now that posting it cannot affect his mental health, perhaps mental health awareness is important to talk about. (A side note, I still think the privacy of those who pass away is important, but I think talking about mental health is also important.)
- greenavocado 1y ago
  Could have been an adverse reaction to Benadryl or his sleep disturbances could have been a warning sign. "BeccaHarris: I took a Benadryl to make sure I got 8+ hours of sleep, it hit me a lot faster and harder than expected. before I knew it 15+ mins had passed and I nodded off a few times, and suddenly poeople were freaking ou" https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1obo71s/comment/nkhbzvb/ https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1obo71s/comment/nkhb... https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/06/sleep-disturbances-predict-increased-risk-for-suicidal-symptoms.html https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/06/sleep-disturb...
  - JohnLocke4 1y ago
    I suggest we stop speculating about the cause of death and instead wait for an official announcement to be made. Please respect the family at this time.
    - mynameisvlad 1y ago
      I get respecting the family while grieving but let’s be real here, is anyone from the family realistically going to even find let alone care about random strangers speculating on a random internet platform that isn’t even related to chess? The chance of this even reaching them is infinitesimally small. We’re not standing around talking about it with them in the room, we shouldn’t be pretending like we are.
SubiculumCode 1y ago
I've watched so many of his videos..He always seemed like a great guys, and so brilliant. He also always seemed like he had a deep sadness about him. That has always been my impression, but of course just a personal impression. I don't know the cause of his death, but, of course I wonder.
greedo 1y ago
I thought nothing could shock me this year, but Danya's death has shaken me to my core.
CSMastermind 1y ago
That is heartbreaking. He was so incredibly kind and an amazing teacher. Apparently he did a stream where he looked pretty bad. It's too late to help Danya but if you ever see a friend in a bad place hopefully this reminds you to take action.
sexyman48 1y ago
I think all chess fans can recall Ivanchuk's recent mortifying defeat at Naroditsky's lightning-quick hands at World Blitz. Just goes to show no matter how devastating the loss, someone, perhaps even your vanquisher, is having an even harder time.
- freediver 1y ago
  Reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_evi2X-PY0c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_evi2X-PY0c I cried at the end too.
greedo 1y ago
I (like many) started playing chess online during COVID and despite being too damn old, I wanted to see how high I could climb in ratings. Soon I found Danya, then Gotham, then IMRosen. All who loved this damn game so much. Even found I liked Hikaru though as an oldster, so many of his memes went over my head. I soon realized that no matter how hard I tried, I would never be ranked, and I was fine with that because lichess had become an outlet. An outlet from the horrors of COVID. An outlet from the shock of a brutal war in Europe. An outlet from my failing marriage. An outlet from the world turned upside down in the US. I could always find solace in a rapid game on lichess. Danya... I plateaued around 1400 and often found it hard to follow his gameplay on his speed runs. He was thinking 4-5 moves ahead while I was trying to avoid simple blunders. But Danya was easy to listen to, humble, and he helped instill a love in me of being very honest in my game evaluation. He also seemed like an incredibly charitable player; when it was obvious someone was cheating, he always gave them the benefit of the doubt, even when stockfish made it clear what was happening. His charity and kindness was endearing. The world is a much lesser place today.
- colechristensen 1y ago
  You might not ever get titled, but a 1400 online is very much good enough to join your national chess federation and be middle of the pack competitive in local rated chess tournaments and the like.
  - retsibsi 1y ago
    I feel weird doing a 'well actually' in a post about something so serious and sad, but it might be worth pointing this out to prevent someone from getting the wrong idea about their chess strength: the meaning of '1400 online' varies greatly depending on the site and the time control. According to https://chessgoals.com/rating-comparison/ https://chessgoals.com/rating-comparison/, Chesscom blitz 500 = Lichess classical 1400, and chesscom blitz 1400 = lichess rapid 1880. (I don't know how accurate that site is, but the general point is definitely true; AFAIK Lichess and Chesscom use different rating systems with different means, and within each site the strength of the player pool varies across the time controls.)
jakespencer 1y ago
He was my favorite chess player to watch online. It’s been a few years since I watched a lot of chess, but he was the best. RIP
hans0l074 1y ago
A sad day for chess and chess fans around the world. I smiled when I saw this news posted here - Danya would have loved being among the nerds (I always saw him as one). I will never forget the final game, game 14 of WC2024 between Ding and Gukesh commentated by Peter Leko and Daniel. His reaction[1] at 4:18:40, when Ding blundered with Rf2 is priceless. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqA9mvyI0j4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqA9mvyI0j4
3ple_alpha 1y ago
Even my local Swedish newspaper paid him respects. It may feel a bit better knowing that somewhere half way across the world, people knew him and considered him a celebrity.
- toomuchtodo 1y ago
  Link to the tribute mentioned?
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
cidd 1y ago
-deleted- might be fake news
- bigeatie 1y ago
  I'm not seeing anything on Dubov's Facebook page since April 9th. Can you provide a link?
  - cidd 1y ago
    I am going to delete this in 5min because I also can't find any public sources about this.
    - nomilk 1y ago
      Can you provide the original (facebook) source? Because I can't even find that.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
- nonethewiser 1y ago
  >He was getting ready to stream when he felt uneasiness and nausea causing him to collapse. How could anyone possibly know this?
janalsncm 1y ago
Really devastating. He was my favorite chess streamer and such a genuine person. I remember distinctly every time his opponent was suspected of cheating he was adamant in giving them the benefit of the doubt. No matter what we find out in the next few days, I wish authorities had taken Kramnik’s cyber bullying more seriously. It’s a stain on chess that this is allowed to continue. To take the conversation in a more technical direction, there are pretty clear parallels with “AI detector” technology which also could be (and I’m sure has been) life ruining. For both writing and chess, there are no authenticity detectors, only circumstantial evidence.
- y-curious 1y ago
  Yes, Kramnik’s BS was a large stressor on Danya and just a damn shame. Today is a dark day.
  - John23832 1y ago
    Kramnik frankly has proven himself to be a POS. Even outside of this context. He's been baselessly accusing everyone of cheating for years.
nonethewiser 1y ago
What the fuck
yuvadam 1y ago
Literally yesterday my toddler son came into the room, saw me watching his last video - "You thought I was gone?! Speedrun returns!" - and asked me who that is. I told him his name is Danya and he teaches people how to play a game. </3
beaker52 1y ago
I am deeply saddened by Danya's passing. I'm not a massive chess player, but I regard him as one of the top 10 most awe inspiring individuals I've had the pleasure of witnessing through his YT channel. I was genuinely awed and impressed by the guy. As deeply as I am saddened, I am also angered by the context within which he has passed. Extremely angry. So extremely angry.
Barrin92 1y ago
Horrible news, he wasn't even 30 years old. There's something oddly devastating about seeing people pass away in these online communities. I've never been one to really be affected by celebrities passing away, but I remember a few years when Geoff Robinson died (who was active in the Starcraft scene) that one hit me surprisingly badly as well. Obviously it's banal in a sense because you always know people can die, but there's something very weird about seeing someone livestream one day and then you just get a headline like this on the next.
nurettin 1y ago
I will just say it out loud. Kramnik bullied him to death. And no, I won't "define bullying".
- hilux 1y ago
  I loathe Kramnik and I am saddened and shaken by Danya's death. (We both played at the Mechanics Institute Chess Club.) Having said all that, the prevailing wisdom in the suicide-prevention field is that we are each responsible for our own decisions. I.e. Kramnik, long may he suffer, is not "responsible."
  - nurettin 1y ago
    I have no idea why you think online harassment brings no responsibility to perpetrators. During an exchange Kramnik said "you started it" so this is just out of pure spite. Anyway I don't live in your kafkaesque reality and do not wish to.
    - hilux 11mo ago
      Maybe you should volunteer on the suicide hotline, as I did.
      - nurettin 11mo ago
        Maybe, but I'm not sure if I have the aptitude to do that, or if you should be ascribing that role randomly to strangers, or if that gives you any credibility. In most countries, continued harassment, defamation and disturbing peace is a crime. Apparently even in FIDE rules as Nihal pointed it out. So FIDE is pretty much a co-conspirer.
        hilux 11mo ago
        Well, if you won't do that, then (instead of arguing) you could learn from someone who made the effort: me.
tromp 1y ago
Chess.com coverage at https://www.chess.com/news/view/grandmaster-daniel-naroditsky-dies-at-29 https://www.chess.com/news/view/grandmaster-daniel-naroditsk... ChessBase coverage at https://en.chessbase.com/post/daniel-naroditsky-1995-2 https://en.chessbase.com/post/daniel-naroditsky-1995-2
michaelmarkell 1y ago
Danya was like the Mr. Rogers of chess. He had a way of making you feel accepted into the chess community even if you were a beginner, and was such a clear thinker. I strive to be more like him, and am devastated by this loss.
DEDLINE 1y ago
Love you Danya. You were one of a kind. See you in due time <3
davesque 1y ago
I've seen people trying to blame Kramnik for this, with his cheating accusations and all. I think Kramnik is a jerk like everyone else, but it still seems crazy to point the finger at him. We could find out tomorrow that Naroditsky died of a random stroke. We just have no idea at this point.
stevage 1y ago
Oh no, that's really awful. Danya was such a wonderful chess communicator.
univalent 1y ago
I'm heartbroken. It's been a few years since I met him in person but loved watching him on his streams. He was such a ray of light beloved by all. Like others I noted with alarm his appearance and strange behavior the past few months. Hope his family finds peace.
univalent 1y ago
Kramnik should be held accountable for making Danya's life hell the past year. Not blaming him for what has happened but this bullying has to stop. It was clear to me and many others that he started attacking Danya because he was a "Russian boy" who did not defend him when Hikaru mocked Kramnik. I'm really upset now so maybe not making much sense.
- epolanski 1y ago
  If you're not blaming him, then you shouldn't hold him accountable. Kramnik has accused of online cheating virtually every grandmaster bar some of the top 10 and none in the community gives Kramnik much weight on this topic.
  - scott_w 1y ago
    >> Kramnik should be held accountable for making Danya's life hell the past year OP is not blaming him specifically for Danya's death. Irrespective of that, Kramnik is behaving like a total cunt and treated Danya like absolute shit for no reason beyond his own pathetic delusions. Naroditsky isn't even the youngest person Kramnik has bullied: he's doxxed fucking children and accused them of cheating. I watched Hikaru's YouTube video this morning and it's clear that Kramnik's accusations were getting to all of his victims. Naroditsky was giving Kramnik's opinion weight, whether he took his own life, or passed of other causes. So yes, Kramnik needs to be shunned and frozen out of the chess world and any decent company for the way he's behaved.
- xiphias2 1y ago
  I'm sure he said bad things about Danya, and even now he's protecting himself when he should be just sorry for what terrible thing has happened, but generally Danya was more liked than Kramnik, so he can't be responsible / accountable for something he doesn't have power over (Danya's life). If you are famous, you will have haters, it's part of the deal. I agree with the crowd who say that mental health issues should be taken seriously instead of kept under the rug.
ShayNehmad 1y ago
The bullying by the clearly deranged Kramnik has got to stop. Someone needs to take away his internet access and get him professional help. Rip danya
jymspaul 1y ago
RIP
yapyap 1y ago
holy shit. there’s an interesting (but not necessarily causual in either direction) link between chess and depression https://www.chess.com/blog/AstroTheoretical_Physics/chess-players-who-battled-depression https://www.chess.com/blog/AstroTheoretical_Physics/chess-pl... either how, RIP
- ai-christianson 1y ago
  Isn't there a link between high intelligence and depression as well?
  - toinewx 1y ago
    is being good at chess a proof of human intelligence?
    - puttycat 1y ago
      Not proof (if there is any such thing for intelligence) but a very strong indicator, yes.
    - imchillyb 1y ago
      The ability to plan and operate several moves ahead of one’s opponent has always suggested higher intelligence. When applied to war we celebrate the general’s brilliance. When applied to economics we say they had excellent foresight. When applied to any human endeavor, except chess, the accomplishment is celebrated as a human achievement. This is due to humans placing great value upon thinking and planning ahead. Only the intelligent exhibit this behavior.
    - gjm11 1y ago
      I think there's some correlation but no, you can be amazingly strong at chess and not super-intelligent by other measures, or be incredibly good at physics or philosophy or poetry or whatever and have no talent for chess. But, having watched some of Naroditsky's videos, it seems pretty clear that he was in fact very intelligent as well as very good at chess.
    - 1y ago
somenameforme 1y ago
There's huge pink elephant that I think many aren't aware of here. A former chess world champion, Vladimir Kramnik, has turned into a sort of self satire seeking out cheaters in online chess. Basically everybody is cheating according to him, he even implied Hikaru Nakamura, the 2nd strongest player in the world, could be cheating. Eventually his sights fell on Danya. At first I thought they were both kind of playing it up as a sort of a joke. For instance after the accusations Danya did a video where he had something absurd like a dozen different cameras watching him play from different angles. And in response Kramnik mentioned some petty absurdity that I can't even recall at this point - maybe there was a laptop on a chair or something? 'What is that computer Danya, suspicious, him?' And this sort of nonsense continued on for some time. I still think Kramnik is doing it as a half-serious joke, but Danya clearly took it very seriously. He believed that his reputation had been ruined (even though just most people think Kramnik is the one who has mostly destroyed his own reputation and mostly just seen as a bit 'kooky' now a days) and Danya became a dramatically different person over about 2 years. Previously he was kind of a happy go lucky blitz obsessed guy. But he gradually became increasingly morose and insecure. He also seemed to be losing weight, though I have no idea if that is accurate - I'm basing it solely on outside appearances which can be misleading. In any case, this was almost certainly related, and it makes the whole situation far darker.
- j4coh 1y ago
  We don’t even know yet how he died, isn’t it a bit early to pin it on someone?
  - yuvadam 1y ago
    If you've been following the drama, his involvement is obvious at this point.
  - charlysl 1y ago
    Sure, but all the same, given what you've said, isn't it a bit weird that Kramnik himself has rushed to raise drug taking suspicions? Is he trying to divert attention? Regardless of whether he has anything to do with this, it would have been classy of him to stay quiet for a while about this
charlysl 1y ago
Well, i feel a bit reluctant about sharing this, because it is so sad, but the following was recorded not long ago ... wouldn't be surprised if they took it down https://youtu.be/6_anRV5ZFWY?si=csobK4NBKKT-tE8H https://youtu.be/6_anRV5ZFWY?si=csobK4NBKKT-tE8H
mazone 1y ago
Trying not to sound too cold, he seemed like a very nice guy and i did not know him. It was not surprising for me. I remember seeing interview with him when he took things very personal and could not let things go some year back. Thought at that time that he was at high risk of suicide. He seemed to have a self loathing personality / depression and obsessive behaviors. Staying on the Internet and be dependent on it in some way financially working as a streamer with all the short form communication and negativity online. Together with cyber bullies etc. A lot of things creating a perfect storm for what seemed to be a sensitive and very nice guy. Easy to say that his family and real life friends should have seen it too and make him change path but in reality it is difficult. Especially since things that make it worse like sitting down and playing chess all day / night and not getting enough sleep, together with cyber bullies is also the things that you love, you earn money on and you have many of your friends there.
- pogue 1y ago
  I asked Perplexity what people are speculating online might have been the cause of his death, and it mostly appears to revolve around mental health issues, substance abuse & self harm. Whether or not it's true, this is a tragic loss. Smart & talented people can often be very sensitive. https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-speculation-online-rmOTJMZSTECneCjn.0wMVA https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-speculation-onl... Having struggled with these same issues for most of my adult life I'll just say it's nothing to be ashamed of and if you or someone you care about is in pain or struggling, don't hesitate to reach out. There are resources out there for you and it doesn't make you weak for using them. US: 988 Lifeline https://988lifeline.org/ https://988lifeline.org/ US, Canada, UK & Ireland: Crisis Text Line https://www.crisistextline.org/ https://www.crisistextline.org/ Worldwide list of resources: https://findahelpline.com/ https://findahelpline.com/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines
mythz 1y ago
Danya's death hit hard. He was a kind soul that was always generous with his time who loved playing, teaching and commentating chess and was easily one of the nicest GMs in chess. I was an avid watcher of his Stream while he was regular streamer and commentator (amongst the best in the world), unfortunately saw the effect of his once idol Kramnik's accusations had on him, having to constantly prove himself, even in is his last stream [1], playing beyond exhaustion to the point his friends had to get him to physically switch off his stream, but he didn't want to because he was worried that if he had good results off stream that people would raise questions. Kramnik was an ex World Champion, became unhinged and started indiscriminately accusing many GMs who beat him in short time controls of cheating, absurd claims made from his bedroom watching streams playing detective, where he accused #2 GM Hikaru that he had access to an evaluation bar which his editors added on his games he reviews before publishing them to YouTube [2]. In addition to torturing Danya with accusations for a year he also drove GM David Navara to depression [3] who he is currently trying to sue for defamation. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbk-mvBmLUM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbk-mvBmLUM [2] https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1dtlvcb/kramnik_believes_hikaru_can_see_the_evaluation/ https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1dtlvcb/kramnik_beli... [3] https://www.chess.com/blog/FormerProdigy/because-we-care https://www.chess.com/blog/FormerProdigy/because-we-care
ddp26 1y ago
This seems as good a place as any for a mini obituary. I'm 6 years older than Danya, and we shared the same beloved chess coach in the Bay Area. I played him in a tournament game when I was 17 and he was 11, at the Mechanics Club in SF. I was an NM, and he held me to a draw. (Afterward he told me my position was better when we agreed to a draw, which was news to me!) Around that time Danya won the World Under 12 Championship. Americans almost never win those events, and it was a big big deal in the American chess community. But to me, most impressive was when in 2007, at age 12, in 6th or 7th grade, he won a much easier tournament, the California High School championship. I had won it the previous year, as an 11th grader - my crowning achievement. We all knew then that Naroditsky was a generational talent, but it was something special that this child - very tall for his age, but still oh so young - beat up all the serious high schooler competitors. He then went to Stanford, and took an introductory CS course taught by my brother. Everything I heard indicated he was an exceptional contribution to Stanford's culture. He had such wide interests and curiosity, and became a history major. He probably was the most erudite chess player of his generation, reading (and writing!) books at a huge clip. I remember vividly in his early streaming days, long before Danya became an internet chess celebrity, he was taking challenges while I was watching, so I logged in to the site and played him. I managed to beat him in a blitz game in front of all of his viewers. He was mad! I'm a strong blitz player but he is world-class, consistently a top ~10 blitz player in the world for the last 10 years. (I used to watch him on the old terminal-like chess server, the Internet Chess Club, under the handle "Danya", as he destroyed everyone while still a preteen and largely unknown.) I don't want to add to the speculation to what happened to him. Suffice to say, I am not convinced by the story people are jumping to. He will be deeply missed, and he will not be forgotten. He was absolutely unique and a gem of the chess world. Farewell, Danya.
matltc 1y ago
I think we all need to see this right now. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opdegV4nwTM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opdegV4nwTM
HughParry 1y ago
RIP Danya <3
cyrialize 1y ago
I'm absolutely saddened by this news. I'm not good at chess, if anything I'm pretty horrible at it, but I love reading and watching videos about it. Danya's videos were amazing, and provided so much insight into this thought process and chess.

431 points by ntnbr 1y ago

perihelions 1y ago

This is shocking, I have no words. The poor guy.

ajiang 1y ago

This makes me so tremendously sad. Danya was one of the biggest blessings to the online chess community.

toomuchtodo 1y ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Naroditsky https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Naroditsky

Ataraxic 1y ago

Super out of the blue. I loved his videos and he taught me a lot after I got into chess during covid. rest in peace.

password54321 1y ago

Really good teacher, helped me go from 800 to 1600 in under a year. Used to watch his speedruns a lot. https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM

_dark_matter_ 1y ago

I was wondering why I knew his name - he published a series of chess puzzles based on actual historic games in the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/chess-puzzles https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/chess-puzzles. They were fabulous, and I especially enjoyed his commentary. May he rest in peace.

dak1 1y ago

Danya was such an incredibly positive influence on the chess community, a tremendous teacher whose YouTube content I’m sure will remain popular for years to come, and my personal favorite chess commentator. He was also only 29 years old. I’m actually in tears right now struggling how to break this news to my son, who absolutely loved Danya and had a chance to play him OTB last year.

bongodongobob 1y ago

He was such a great teacher and player. Absolutely loved his videos. He seemed like such a wholesome positive person, this is very sad.

nightfox1 1y ago

RIP the great RebeccaHarris :(

benmmurphy 1y ago

[flagged]

amrrs 1y ago

It's heartbreaking and sad. His video a couple of days back was literally titled "You thought I was gone! Speedrun retruns" The comments on that video was so kind and heartwarming where people wished him well. While we don't know the exact cause, we can all agree that he was subjected to extreme bullying and no one stood up for him - most importantly FIDE!

CalChris 1y ago
Kramnick.
- nomilk 1y ago
  From what I understand, Kramnick pointed out Danya's behaviour was erratic and suspected alcohol or drug use (everyone else broached it much more sensitively, saying drugs was a ridiculous notion, and giving him space/privacy but perhaps suspecting possible mental health, mental breakdown, or maybe narcolepsy). Kramnick may have been forthright and lacking tact, but it was clear from Danya's behaviours that he sadly had an underlying psychological condition that could happen to any of us.
  - monooso 1y ago
    Kramnick repeatedly accused Danya of cheating, which prompted a lot of ongoing abuse from his acolytes. Danya spoke publicly about the stress this caused him several times. Of course, as ever, Kramnick had nothing to back up his claims, a fact which in no way prevented him repeating them ad-nauseum. That's not being "forthright" or "lacking tact". That's being an abusive asshole.
    - nomilk 1y ago
      I hadn't follow closely enough and wasn't aware - thanks for pointing out. Kramnick accuses Danya of cheating (several pieces of circumstantial 'evidence' in the thread): https://x.com/VBkramnik/status/1911179469773033512 https://x.com/VBkramnik/status/1911179469773033512 A tweet by IM Kostya Kavutskiy of ChessDojo from November 2024 (paraphrased): > Our intention was to express concern for what's going on. Many of us supported Kramnik's fight against online cheating for some time. > But then he started naming players left & right, some of whom were likely 100% innocent, who got their name dragged through the mud regardless. Kramnik also started naming actual children at one point, without any real evidence from what I could tell > And it's not "just asking questions", it's casting aspersions. And the words of any world champion obviously carry a lot of responsibility. https://x.com/hellokostya/status/1852388806143390131 https://x.com/hellokostya/status/1852388806143390131

mathattack 1y ago

Several years ago he taught kids locally in the Bay Area. Very sad to see someone go that's so young.

sexyman48 1y ago

If life could be measured in potential moves considered, he lived several lifetimes. Sad to see such a force of nature expire so soon. Condolences to the Russian chick and their kid.

heartbreak 1y ago
> Condolences to the Russian chick and their kid. The statement from CCC doesn’t mention him having a kid. Pretty sure he did not have one.

atannen 1y ago

Ouch. Danya was a great player (world rank 151, USA rank 17). Popular player, teacher, streamer and chess event commentator. Studied at Stanford. The NY Times' current chess columnist. About to turn 30 years old.

mellosouls 1y ago

This is terrible news if true; so young and such a positive voice and influence. One of the best live commentators, and among a generation of savvy chess influencers he seemed particularly sincere and without motivation beyond love of the game and communicating it's brilliance to others. RIP GM Danya

perihelions 1y ago
> "if true" To swiftly terminate that thread, it is not a hoax; his North Carolina friend Oleksandr Bortnyk confirmed it on his video stream.

colechristensen 1y ago

I'm shocked, he was a great teacher and seemed like the nicest dude of all the chess streamers out there. https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM/videos https://www.youtube.com/@DanielNaroditskyGM/videos https://www.twitch.tv/gmnaroditsky https://www.twitch.tv/gmnaroditsky https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/12/crosswords/chess-columnist-naroditsky.html https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/12/crosswords/chess-columnis...

mokkol 1y ago

I can't believe this. Yesterday I saw his last educational speedrun[0]. He was such a great positive dude and I really enjoyed his content. He will be missed! [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rqPeGKVPbA&t=1834s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rqPeGKVPbA&t=1834s I would love to donate some to his family if anybody has a link to share.

underdeserver 1y ago
Are you sure? I think the statement said he was a son.
- mokkol 1y ago
  You are right, sorry about that. I can't read today. I deleted that part.

vrnvu 1y ago

Shocking to hear this news. I used to watch Danya's videos a lot... RIP

srge 1y ago

He was such a great guy. Wholesome. What a loss.

RandomBacon 1y ago

Regarding the flagged/dead comment that links to concern about Daniel Naroditsky's health a few days ago, I don't think burrying our heads in the sand is correct approach now. It might have been wise to respect his privacy and not talk about him publicly and while he was alive and could read it, but now that posting it cannot affect his mental health, perhaps mental health awareness is important to talk about. (A side note, I still think the privacy of those who pass away is important, but I think talking about mental health is also important.)

greenavocado 1y ago
Could have been an adverse reaction to Benadryl or his sleep disturbances could have been a warning sign. "BeccaHarris: I took a Benadryl to make sure I got 8+ hours of sleep, it hit me a lot faster and harder than expected. before I knew it 15+ mins had passed and I nodded off a few times, and suddenly poeople were freaking ou" https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1obo71s/comment/nkhbzvb/ https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1obo71s/comment/nkhb... https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/06/sleep-disturbances-predict-increased-risk-for-suicidal-symptoms.html https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/06/sleep-disturb...
- JohnLocke4 1y ago
  I suggest we stop speculating about the cause of death and instead wait for an official announcement to be made. Please respect the family at this time.
  - mynameisvlad 1y ago
    I get respecting the family while grieving but let’s be real here, is anyone from the family realistically going to even find let alone care about random strangers speculating on a random internet platform that isn’t even related to chess? The chance of this even reaching them is infinitesimally small. We’re not standing around talking about it with them in the room, we shouldn’t be pretending like we are.

SubiculumCode 1y ago

I've watched so many of his videos..He always seemed like a great guys, and so brilliant. He also always seemed like he had a deep sadness about him. That has always been my impression, but of course just a personal impression. I don't know the cause of his death, but, of course I wonder.

greedo 1y ago

I thought nothing could shock me this year, but Danya's death has shaken me to my core.

CSMastermind 1y ago

That is heartbreaking. He was so incredibly kind and an amazing teacher. Apparently he did a stream where he looked pretty bad. It's too late to help Danya but if you ever see a friend in a bad place hopefully this reminds you to take action.

sexyman48 1y ago

I think all chess fans can recall Ivanchuk's recent mortifying defeat at Naroditsky's lightning-quick hands at World Blitz. Just goes to show no matter how devastating the loss, someone, perhaps even your vanquisher, is having an even harder time.

freediver 1y ago
Reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_evi2X-PY0c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_evi2X-PY0c I cried at the end too.

greedo 1y ago

I (like many) started playing chess online during COVID and despite being too damn old, I wanted to see how high I could climb in ratings. Soon I found Danya, then Gotham, then IMRosen. All who loved this damn game so much. Even found I liked Hikaru though as an oldster, so many of his memes went over my head. I soon realized that no matter how hard I tried, I would never be ranked, and I was fine with that because lichess had become an outlet. An outlet from the horrors of COVID. An outlet from the shock of a brutal war in Europe. An outlet from my failing marriage. An outlet from the world turned upside down in the US. I could always find solace in a rapid game on lichess. Danya... I plateaued around 1400 and often found it hard to follow his gameplay on his speed runs. He was thinking 4-5 moves ahead while I was trying to avoid simple blunders. But Danya was easy to listen to, humble, and he helped instill a love in me of being very honest in my game evaluation. He also seemed like an incredibly charitable player; when it was obvious someone was cheating, he always gave them the benefit of the doubt, even when stockfish made it clear what was happening. His charity and kindness was endearing. The world is a much lesser place today.

colechristensen 1y ago
You might not ever get titled, but a 1400 online is very much good enough to join your national chess federation and be middle of the pack competitive in local rated chess tournaments and the like.
- retsibsi 1y ago
  I feel weird doing a 'well actually' in a post about something so serious and sad, but it might be worth pointing this out to prevent someone from getting the wrong idea about their chess strength: the meaning of '1400 online' varies greatly depending on the site and the time control. According to https://chessgoals.com/rating-comparison/ https://chessgoals.com/rating-comparison/, Chesscom blitz 500 = Lichess classical 1400, and chesscom blitz 1400 = lichess rapid 1880. (I don't know how accurate that site is, but the general point is definitely true; AFAIK Lichess and Chesscom use different rating systems with different means, and within each site the strength of the player pool varies across the time controls.)

jakespencer 1y ago

He was my favorite chess player to watch online. It’s been a few years since I watched a lot of chess, but he was the best. RIP

hans0l074 1y ago

A sad day for chess and chess fans around the world. I smiled when I saw this news posted here - Danya would have loved being among the nerds (I always saw him as one). I will never forget the final game, game 14 of WC2024 between Ding and Gukesh commentated by Peter Leko and Daniel. His reaction[1] at 4:18:40, when Ding blundered with Rf2 is priceless. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqA9mvyI0j4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqA9mvyI0j4

3ple_alpha 1y ago

Even my local Swedish newspaper paid him respects. It may feel a bit better knowing that somewhere half way across the world, people knew him and considered him a celebrity.

toomuchtodo 1y ago
Link to the tribute mentioned?

deleted 1y ago

[deleted]

cidd 1y ago

-deleted- might be fake news

bigeatie 1y ago
I'm not seeing anything on Dubov's Facebook page since April 9th. Can you provide a link?
- cidd 1y ago
  I am going to delete this in 5min because I also can't find any public sources about this.
  - nomilk 1y ago
    Can you provide the original (facebook) source? Because I can't even find that.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
nonethewiser 1y ago
>He was getting ready to stream when he felt uneasiness and nausea causing him to collapse. How could anyone possibly know this?

janalsncm 1y ago

Really devastating. He was my favorite chess streamer and such a genuine person. I remember distinctly every time his opponent was suspected of cheating he was adamant in giving them the benefit of the doubt. No matter what we find out in the next few days, I wish authorities had taken Kramnik’s cyber bullying more seriously. It’s a stain on chess that this is allowed to continue. To take the conversation in a more technical direction, there are pretty clear parallels with “AI detector” technology which also could be (and I’m sure has been) life ruining. For both writing and chess, there are no authenticity detectors, only circumstantial evidence.

y-curious 1y ago
Yes, Kramnik’s BS was a large stressor on Danya and just a damn shame. Today is a dark day.
- John23832 1y ago
  Kramnik frankly has proven himself to be a POS. Even outside of this context. He's been baselessly accusing everyone of cheating for years.

nonethewiser 1y ago

What the fuck

yuvadam 1y ago

Literally yesterday my toddler son came into the room, saw me watching his last video - "You thought I was gone?! Speedrun returns!" - and asked me who that is. I told him his name is Danya and he teaches people how to play a game. </3

beaker52 1y ago

I am deeply saddened by Danya's passing. I'm not a massive chess player, but I regard him as one of the top 10 most awe inspiring individuals I've had the pleasure of witnessing through his YT channel. I was genuinely awed and impressed by the guy. As deeply as I am saddened, I am also angered by the context within which he has passed. Extremely angry. So extremely angry.

Barrin92 1y ago

Horrible news, he wasn't even 30 years old. There's something oddly devastating about seeing people pass away in these online communities. I've never been one to really be affected by celebrities passing away, but I remember a few years when Geoff Robinson died (who was active in the Starcraft scene) that one hit me surprisingly badly as well. Obviously it's banal in a sense because you always know people can die, but there's something very weird about seeing someone livestream one day and then you just get a headline like this on the next.

nurettin 1y ago

I will just say it out loud. Kramnik bullied him to death. And no, I won't "define bullying".

hilux 1y ago
I loathe Kramnik and I am saddened and shaken by Danya's death. (We both played at the Mechanics Institute Chess Club.) Having said all that, the prevailing wisdom in the suicide-prevention field is that we are each responsible for our own decisions. I.e. Kramnik, long may he suffer, is not "responsible."
- nurettin 1y ago
  I have no idea why you think online harassment brings no responsibility to perpetrators. During an exchange Kramnik said "you started it" so this is just out of pure spite. Anyway I don't live in your kafkaesque reality and do not wish to.
  - hilux 11mo ago
    Maybe you should volunteer on the suicide hotline, as I did.
    - nurettin 11mo ago
      Maybe, but I'm not sure if I have the aptitude to do that, or if you should be ascribing that role randomly to strangers, or if that gives you any credibility. In most countries, continued harassment, defamation and disturbing peace is a crime. Apparently even in FIDE rules as Nihal pointed it out. So FIDE is pretty much a co-conspirer.
      - hilux 11mo ago
        Well, if you won't do that, then (instead of arguing) you could learn from someone who made the effort: me.

tromp 1y ago

Chess.com coverage at https://www.chess.com/news/view/grandmaster-daniel-naroditsky-dies-at-29 https://www.chess.com/news/view/grandmaster-daniel-naroditsk... ChessBase coverage at https://en.chessbase.com/post/daniel-naroditsky-1995-2 https://en.chessbase.com/post/daniel-naroditsky-1995-2

michaelmarkell 1y ago

Danya was like the Mr. Rogers of chess. He had a way of making you feel accepted into the chess community even if you were a beginner, and was such a clear thinker. I strive to be more like him, and am devastated by this loss.

DEDLINE 1y ago

Love you Danya. You were one of a kind. See you in due time <3

davesque 1y ago

I've seen people trying to blame Kramnik for this, with his cheating accusations and all. I think Kramnik is a jerk like everyone else, but it still seems crazy to point the finger at him. We could find out tomorrow that Naroditsky died of a random stroke. We just have no idea at this point.

stevage 1y ago

Oh no, that's really awful. Danya was such a wonderful chess communicator.

univalent 1y ago

I'm heartbroken. It's been a few years since I met him in person but loved watching him on his streams. He was such a ray of light beloved by all. Like others I noted with alarm his appearance and strange behavior the past few months. Hope his family finds peace.

univalent 1y ago

Kramnik should be held accountable for making Danya's life hell the past year. Not blaming him for what has happened but this bullying has to stop. It was clear to me and many others that he started attacking Danya because he was a "Russian boy" who did not defend him when Hikaru mocked Kramnik. I'm really upset now so maybe not making much sense.

epolanski 1y ago
If you're not blaming him, then you shouldn't hold him accountable. Kramnik has accused of online cheating virtually every grandmaster bar some of the top 10 and none in the community gives Kramnik much weight on this topic.
- scott_w 1y ago
  >> Kramnik should be held accountable for making Danya's life hell the past year OP is not blaming him specifically for Danya's death. Irrespective of that, Kramnik is behaving like a total cunt and treated Danya like absolute shit for no reason beyond his own pathetic delusions. Naroditsky isn't even the youngest person Kramnik has bullied: he's doxxed fucking children and accused them of cheating. I watched Hikaru's YouTube video this morning and it's clear that Kramnik's accusations were getting to all of his victims. Naroditsky was giving Kramnik's opinion weight, whether he took his own life, or passed of other causes. So yes, Kramnik needs to be shunned and frozen out of the chess world and any decent company for the way he's behaved.
xiphias2 1y ago
I'm sure he said bad things about Danya, and even now he's protecting himself when he should be just sorry for what terrible thing has happened, but generally Danya was more liked than Kramnik, so he can't be responsible / accountable for something he doesn't have power over (Danya's life). If you are famous, you will have haters, it's part of the deal. I agree with the crowd who say that mental health issues should be taken seriously instead of kept under the rug.

ShayNehmad 1y ago

The bullying by the clearly deranged Kramnik has got to stop. Someone needs to take away his internet access and get him professional help. Rip danya

jymspaul 1y ago

RIP

yapyap 1y ago

holy shit. there’s an interesting (but not necessarily causual in either direction) link between chess and depression https://www.chess.com/blog/AstroTheoretical_Physics/chess-players-who-battled-depression https://www.chess.com/blog/AstroTheoretical_Physics/chess-pl... either how, RIP

ai-christianson 1y ago
Isn't there a link between high intelligence and depression as well?
- toinewx 1y ago
  is being good at chess a proof of human intelligence?
  - puttycat 1y ago
    Not proof (if there is any such thing for intelligence) but a very strong indicator, yes.
  - imchillyb 1y ago
    The ability to plan and operate several moves ahead of one’s opponent has always suggested higher intelligence. When applied to war we celebrate the general’s brilliance. When applied to economics we say they had excellent foresight. When applied to any human endeavor, except chess, the accomplishment is celebrated as a human achievement. This is due to humans placing great value upon thinking and planning ahead. Only the intelligent exhibit this behavior.
  - gjm11 1y ago
    I think there's some correlation but no, you can be amazingly strong at chess and not super-intelligent by other measures, or be incredibly good at physics or philosophy or poetry or whatever and have no talent for chess. But, having watched some of Naroditsky's videos, it seems pretty clear that he was in fact very intelligent as well as very good at chess.
  - 1y ago

somenameforme 1y ago

There's huge pink elephant that I think many aren't aware of here. A former chess world champion, Vladimir Kramnik, has turned into a sort of self satire seeking out cheaters in online chess. Basically everybody is cheating according to him, he even implied Hikaru Nakamura, the 2nd strongest player in the world, could be cheating. Eventually his sights fell on Danya. At first I thought they were both kind of playing it up as a sort of a joke. For instance after the accusations Danya did a video where he had something absurd like a dozen different cameras watching him play from different angles. And in response Kramnik mentioned some petty absurdity that I can't even recall at this point - maybe there was a laptop on a chair or something? 'What is that computer Danya, suspicious, him?' And this sort of nonsense continued on for some time. I still think Kramnik is doing it as a half-serious joke, but Danya clearly took it very seriously. He believed that his reputation had been ruined (even though just most people think Kramnik is the one who has mostly destroyed his own reputation and mostly just seen as a bit 'kooky' now a days) and Danya became a dramatically different person over about 2 years. Previously he was kind of a happy go lucky blitz obsessed guy. But he gradually became increasingly morose and insecure. He also seemed to be losing weight, though I have no idea if that is accurate - I'm basing it solely on outside appearances which can be misleading. In any case, this was almost certainly related, and it makes the whole situation far darker.

j4coh 1y ago
We don’t even know yet how he died, isn’t it a bit early to pin it on someone?
- yuvadam 1y ago
  If you've been following the drama, his involvement is obvious at this point.
- charlysl 1y ago
  Sure, but all the same, given what you've said, isn't it a bit weird that Kramnik himself has rushed to raise drug taking suspicions? Is he trying to divert attention? Regardless of whether he has anything to do with this, it would have been classy of him to stay quiet for a while about this

charlysl 1y ago

Well, i feel a bit reluctant about sharing this, because it is so sad, but the following was recorded not long ago ... wouldn't be surprised if they took it down https://youtu.be/6_anRV5ZFWY?si=csobK4NBKKT-tE8H https://youtu.be/6_anRV5ZFWY?si=csobK4NBKKT-tE8H

mazone 1y ago

Trying not to sound too cold, he seemed like a very nice guy and i did not know him. It was not surprising for me. I remember seeing interview with him when he took things very personal and could not let things go some year back. Thought at that time that he was at high risk of suicide. He seemed to have a self loathing personality / depression and obsessive behaviors. Staying on the Internet and be dependent on it in some way financially working as a streamer with all the short form communication and negativity online. Together with cyber bullies etc. A lot of things creating a perfect storm for what seemed to be a sensitive and very nice guy. Easy to say that his family and real life friends should have seen it too and make him change path but in reality it is difficult. Especially since things that make it worse like sitting down and playing chess all day / night and not getting enough sleep, together with cyber bullies is also the things that you love, you earn money on and you have many of your friends there.

pogue 1y ago
I asked Perplexity what people are speculating online might have been the cause of his death, and it mostly appears to revolve around mental health issues, substance abuse & self harm. Whether or not it's true, this is a tragic loss. Smart & talented people can often be very sensitive. https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-speculation-online-rmOTJMZSTECneCjn.0wMVA https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-is-the-speculation-onl... Having struggled with these same issues for most of my adult life I'll just say it's nothing to be ashamed of and if you or someone you care about is in pain or struggling, don't hesitate to reach out. There are resources out there for you and it doesn't make you weak for using them. US: 988 Lifeline https://988lifeline.org/ https://988lifeline.org/ US, Canada, UK & Ireland: Crisis Text Line https://www.crisistextline.org/ https://www.crisistextline.org/ Worldwide list of resources: https://findahelpline.com/ https://findahelpline.com/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines

mythz 1y ago

Danya's death hit hard. He was a kind soul that was always generous with his time who loved playing, teaching and commentating chess and was easily one of the nicest GMs in chess. I was an avid watcher of his Stream while he was regular streamer and commentator (amongst the best in the world), unfortunately saw the effect of his once idol Kramnik's accusations had on him, having to constantly prove himself, even in is his last stream [1], playing beyond exhaustion to the point his friends had to get him to physically switch off his stream, but he didn't want to because he was worried that if he had good results off stream that people would raise questions. Kramnik was an ex World Champion, became unhinged and started indiscriminately accusing many GMs who beat him in short time controls of cheating, absurd claims made from his bedroom watching streams playing detective, where he accused #2 GM Hikaru that he had access to an evaluation bar which his editors added on his games he reviews before publishing them to YouTube [2]. In addition to torturing Danya with accusations for a year he also drove GM David Navara to depression [3] who he is currently trying to sue for defamation. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbk-mvBmLUM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbk-mvBmLUM [2] https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1dtlvcb/kramnik_believes_hikaru_can_see_the_evaluation/ https://www.reddit.com/r/chess/comments/1dtlvcb/kramnik_beli... [3] https://www.chess.com/blog/FormerProdigy/because-we-care https://www.chess.com/blog/FormerProdigy/because-we-care

ddp26 1y ago

This seems as good a place as any for a mini obituary. I'm 6 years older than Danya, and we shared the same beloved chess coach in the Bay Area. I played him in a tournament game when I was 17 and he was 11, at the Mechanics Club in SF. I was an NM, and he held me to a draw. (Afterward he told me my position was better when we agreed to a draw, which was news to me!) Around that time Danya won the World Under 12 Championship. Americans almost never win those events, and it was a big big deal in the American chess community. But to me, most impressive was when in 2007, at age 12, in 6th or 7th grade, he won a much easier tournament, the California High School championship. I had won it the previous year, as an 11th grader - my crowning achievement. We all knew then that Naroditsky was a generational talent, but it was something special that this child - very tall for his age, but still oh so young - beat up all the serious high schooler competitors. He then went to Stanford, and took an introductory CS course taught by my brother. Everything I heard indicated he was an exceptional contribution to Stanford's culture. He had such wide interests and curiosity, and became a history major. He probably was the most erudite chess player of his generation, reading (and writing!) books at a huge clip. I remember vividly in his early streaming days, long before Danya became an internet chess celebrity, he was taking challenges while I was watching, so I logged in to the site and played him. I managed to beat him in a blitz game in front of all of his viewers. He was mad! I'm a strong blitz player but he is world-class, consistently a top ~10 blitz player in the world for the last 10 years. (I used to watch him on the old terminal-like chess server, the Internet Chess Club, under the handle "Danya", as he destroyed everyone while still a preteen and largely unknown.) I don't want to add to the speculation to what happened to him. Suffice to say, I am not convinced by the story people are jumping to. He will be deeply missed, and he will not be forgotten. He was absolutely unique and a gem of the chess world. Farewell, Danya.

matltc 1y ago

I think we all need to see this right now. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opdegV4nwTM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opdegV4nwTM

HughParry 1y ago

RIP Danya <3

cyrialize 1y ago

I'm absolutely saddened by this news. I'm not good at chess, if anything I'm pretty horrible at it, but I love reading and watching videos about it. Danya's videos were amazing, and provided so much insight into this thought process and chess.