Daniel Naroditsky - The Tortured Chess Genius
A Mind of Infinite Paths: In Memory of Daniel "Danya" Naroditsky The chess world moves in quiet calculations and sudden, brilliant strokes. The passing of Daniel Naroditsky at the age of 29 is a checkmate delivered by silence, leaving a board forever altered and a community grappling with the loss of one of its brightest lights and kindest souls. To remember Danya is to trace the path of a comet, a trajectory of prodigious talent, profound education, and a painful, ironic collision with the darkest anxieties of modern chess. He was, in equal measure, a world-class grandmaster, the internet's most beloved chess teacher, and a reluctant, poignant figure at the heart of the game's battle for its own soul. His genius announced itself early and with unmistakable clarity. A champion almost as soon as he learned the game from his father at age six, he became the youngest player ever to win the Northern California K-12 Championship at just 11. Later that same year, he claim...