An American chess grandmaster has died at the age of 29. Last year, he said an “evil” Russian player was trying to “ruin my life.”

Since his death, many in the chess community, including the leadership of the International Chess Federation (FIDE), have done so He pointed outFingers In a long struggle between Naroditsky and the former Russian world champion Vladimir Kramnikwho spent more than a year publicly accusing Narodetsky of cheating at online chess without providing substantive evidence. in October 2024 interview with C-squared PodcastNaroditsky described Kramnik’s campaign as a “continuous, vicious and utterly deranged attempt to destroy my life.” He added: “He is trying to destroy my life. He is trying to cause me emotional and physical harm. He knows exactly what he is doing.”

It seemed that these accusations weighed heavily on Naroditsky. In his country Final live broadcast on SaturdayHe discussed the lasting impact of Kramnik’s claims. “Since the Kramnik case, I feel like if you start doing well, people assume the worst intentions,” he said. “The problem is just the residual effect of it.”

Indian grandmaster Nihal Sarin, who played recent matches against Naroditsky on Chess.com. He said Indian Express Naroditsky had said that he was “under tremendous pressure due to many baseless accusations, most notably Kramnik, of course.” Sarin said that Kramnik “literally ended his life” and called for sanctions to be imposed on the Russian player.​

Narodetsky He was awarded the title of Grandmaster in 2013 when he was only 18 years old. He won the U12 World Youth Chess Championship in 2007, and is consistently ranked among the world’s top 200 players in classical chess. Maintain top 25 ranking In blitz chess throughout his career. In August, he won the US National Blitz Championship with a score of 14-0. His estimated net worth ranged between $500,000 and $1 million at the time of his death.

While it is He earned more than $108,000 in documented prize money Out of more than 150 tournaments — including $17,920 from a single 2021 online event — his competitive winnings represented only a small portion of his total income.His real financial success came from diversifying into the booming chess content economy.

with More than 500,000 subscribers on YouTube and 340,000 followers on TwitchNarodetsky generated a lot of additional revenue for himself through subscriptions, donations, advertising and sponsorships. Industry data from 2024 estimated its size Monthly Twitch earnings range between $10,000 and $30,000. He has also written two educational books –Positional chess masterypublished when he was only 14 years old, and Master complex endgames– which continues to generate royalties. As head coach at Charlotte Chess Center and regular Columnist for New York Times and Chess life magazine, his career has embodied the transformation of competitive chess into a viable digital business model, capitalizing on the $1.2 billion global online chess market in 2024 and expected to arrive $3.6 billion by 2033

Leah Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle – Getty Images

Narodetsky has been widely praised for his ability to explain complex chess concepts clearly. “Daniel was a wonderful teacher and explainer of chess, concepts and ideas,” said Daniel Weisbarth, co-owner of Silver Knights Chess Academy in Virginia. L said AP.​

Kramnik, who became world champion in 2000, has accused several players of cheating online in recent years. Czech teacher David Navarra revealed that Kramnik’s allegations made him feel suicidal He wrote to the International Chess Federation (FIDE) requesting sanctions, but no action was taken. Chess.com has suspended Kramnik from awards events in 2023 after he made accusations against several players, Which prompted Kramnik to demand The platform was trying to “silence” me.

After Naroditsky’s death, Kramnik posted on the social media platform Xwriting “Don’t do drugs“, and demands an investigation into what he described as “Strange modern stream” before his death. He claimed that Naroditsky’s friends were “hiding” troubling behavior and erasing evidence by removing recent videos on Twitch. The comments sparked widespread condemnation from the chess community.​

World No. 2 Hikaru Nakamura said He was “devastated” by the news and hurled insults at Kramnik in his live broadcast. Magnus Carlsen, world champion, He said he particularly supported Narodetsky But “maybe he should have done it publicly as well,” describing Kramnik’s prosecution of Narodetsky as “appalling.”

Emil Sotowski, CEO of the International Chess Federation, said Reuters the The organization had been “researching” Kramnik’s year-long campaign Against Naroditsky. FIFA President Arkady Dvorkovich said The Federation will establish an award in memory of NaroditskyDescribing him as “not only a wonderful master, but also a tireless ambassador for chess, and above all – a truly kind, compassionate and good person.”

Naroditsky’s family requested privacy and asked that he be remembered “for his passion and love for the game of chess and for the joy and inspiration he brought to all of us every day.”

You can watch the final of Narodetsky YouTube Video below:

​For this story, luck Use generative AI to help with the rough draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publication.