Daniel Naroditsky Death: Vladimir Kramnik offers condolences, threatens legal action in public statement

Daniel Naroditsky was a 29-year-old Chess Grandmaster who passed away on October 19.

Former World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik has released his official statement in the light of the online backlash he has been facing after the recent death of American GM Daniel Norditsky. Kramnik, who has been relentlessly accusing chess players including established GMs of online cheating, had accused Naroditsky of the same misdoing. 

Norditsky, a 29-year-old GM, who was also a well-known YouTuber, commentator and chess trainer, passed away on 19th October. 

The statement starts with condolences to the family and loved ones of Daniel Naroditsky describing him as “an irreplaceable chess player and person.”

Also Read: FIDE mulls disciplinary action against Vladimir Kramnik over cheating allegations against late GM Daniel Naroditsky

Kramnik then adds that the tragic event has turned into “an opportunity for some to exploit for their own political and media ends,” and he wishes to provide clarification. He highlighted that he never made any personal attack on or insult towards Naroditsky. 

The Russian GM also claimed that he was the only person in the chess community who spoke with Naroditsky, suggesting he had offered help in public as well as private, further adding that Naroditsky ignored his earlier outreach, and the ongoing attempts, after Naroditsky’s passing, to link his name with the tragedy are especially painful. 

In earlier tweets, Kramnik remained firm on his anti-cheating stance and claimed that his actions were purely motivated to safeguard the authenticity of online chess. He also lamented that some remarks by public figures about Naroditsky’s death have been false and without any basis.

Kramnik’s initial tweets were in response to the remarks by many prominent chess players and YouTubers like Nemo Zhou, Levi Rozman, Anna Cramling and India’s Nihal Sarin highlighted the relentless online harassment by Kramnik in their respective tweets.

Who was Daniel Naroditsky?

Born in California, Naroditsky was a child prodigy, who was known for his speed chess skills apart from being a content creator and commentator. He also wrote columns for Chess Life and New York Times while authoring two books.

As a Chess player, he won the U-12 Youth Championship and US Junior Championship in 2013. He went on to earn his Grandmaster title at the age of 17.

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