The International Chess Federation (FIDE) said on Wednesday it was investigating former world champion Vladimir Kramnik's public attacks on Daniel Naroditsky, the American grandmaster. whose sudden death at age 29 stunned the chess world and exposed cracks in the digital age.
Naroditsky, among the most prominent persons Renaissance of the chess era of the pandemicwas one of the most popular players and teachers of his generation, a Stanford-educated prodigy who won the World Under-12 Championship, became a grandmaster at 18, and amassed more than 800,000 followers on Twitch and YouTube. California-born Naroditsky, known as Danya, had a combination of patience, humor, generosity and a gift for communication that made him a standard-bearer for the online chess boom, helping attract a huge new audience to a centuries-old pastime.
In recent years, the explosion of online chess has led to a parallel surge in cheating allegations as players gain access to powerful computer engines capable of suggesting ideal moves in real time. The ecosystem has become both democratized and explosive. “The rate of cheating online is 100 to 200 times higher than at the board,” said Kenneth Regan, an international master and computer scientist who helps FIDE identify cheating as a member of the organization’s Fair Play Commission. “From my point of view, there are between five and 10 cases pending each year.”
Into this explosive atmosphere entered Kramnik, the clever Russian who held the World Championship for almost seven years after the overthrow of Garry Kasparov in 2000. and who is considered by many to be one of the greatest defenders in history. Over the past year, he has accused Naroditsky, without any evidence, of using a chess engine during online games. Naroditsky denied the allegations but acknowledged the damage they caused to his mental well-being. “After what happened with Kramnik, I feel like if I do well, people will assume the worst intentions,” he said during his last Twitch livestream last weekend. “The problem is just the lingering effect of this.”
On Monday, the Charlotte Chess Center, where Naroditsky served as head coach and resident grandmaster since 2020, announced his “unexpected” death. No reason was given, although Ukrainian grandmaster Alexander Bortnik, a close friend of Naroditsky, said he and another friend found the 29-year-old unconscious at home. Congratulations poured in from all over the chess world. “He could explain the game to an ant,” said fellow streamer and international master Levi Rozman, better known as GothamChess. “He existed at the perfect crossroads of brilliant acting and brilliant explanation.”
As grief spread, anger quickly followed. World number two Hikaru Nakamura condemned Kramnik in his broadcast, and five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen criticized the Russian’s “terrible” behavior. Indian grandmaster Nihal Sareen, who played Naroditsky in his last online match, accused Kramnik of “taking a life” in Indian Express remarks, addition that the relentless campaign of accusations had left his friend “under enormous stress.”
“This is a great loss. It is very sad for all of us that a man who was such a valuable resource to the chess community, and also had a universally high approval rating from everyone he met, ended up in the place he did.”@MagnusCarlsen about the death of Daniil Naroditsky. pic.twitter.com/BQJ9Flbp0J
— Take, take, take (@TakeTakeTakeApp) October 21, 2025
Kramnik, 50, who has made similar accusations against other players in recent years, including sarincontinued to post messages even after news of Naroditsky's death, calling it a tragedy that “the police should investigate,” speculating about “financial interests” and threatening legal action against “those who falsely accuse me.” His remarks sparked renewed outrage, intensifying calls for FIDE to intervene.
Sarin, 21, described Kramnik as a “great player, a world champion” who had “given a lot to chess” but objected to his haphazard and haphazard crusade against suspected cheaters: “Cheating in chess is a huge problem. But what Kramnik is doing is completely unacceptable. He just blurts out accusations every day… He was a world champion, after all, very an influential figure. And I don't know if he realizes the impact this can have on innocent people. Kramnik's methods essentially involve you burning down a city to catch some crooks. You kill several thousand other completely innocent guys to get one or two guys.”
This was stated by FIDE Director General Emil Sutovsky. told Reuters the organization “investigated” Kramnik's behavior, noting that “the way Kramnik is approaching this simply cannot be accepted”, referring to repeated public accusations. The federation said it plans to honor Naroditsky with a special award and that its president, Arkady Dvorkovich, will establish an award in his name.
However, Sutovsky's attempt to reflect soon plunged the governing body into even deeper disagreements. IN long post on XHe wrote that while Kramnik's behavior was “horrible and downright shameful”, he also questioned whether Naroditsky's friends had done enough to help him in recent months. “The amount of love shown to Dana after her death is unprecedented,” he wrote. “But here’s the problem – where were you all when Danya was alive and unwell?” He went on to say that “virtue signaling and collecting likes is the worst way to show respect to Dana,” adding that Naroditsky “was kind to many, but it feels like he was lonely most of the time.”
The post caused an immediate reaction. Chess streamer and female grandmaster Nemo Zhou called it “one of the most disgusting, vile things I've ever read.” IN answer to Xshe accused Sutovsky of “blaming the public when you have absolutely no idea who Danya was communicating with” and of failing to protect players from harassment. “Where the hell have you been?” she wrote. “Of course, you do not protect your players from abuse… You are clearly not capable of leading FIDE. Resign immediately.”
Popular Swedish steamer Anna Cramling, who called Kramnik's attacks “cyberbullying”, also criticized Sutovsky's post calling on FIDE to “do everything in your power to ensure that justice prevails.”
Other figures said the FIDE director general's remarks showed his blindness to a broader cultural problem: the climate of suspicion, hostility and parasocial control that now permeates online chess. Many pointed to 2023, when the popular online platform Chess.com closed Kramnik's blog after warning of his “escalating attacks” on dozens of players, calling his accusations “baseless and destructive.”
Naroditsky's family said they hope he is remembered not for the toxicity he endured, but for the “joy and inspiration he brought to people every day.” Carlsen called him “a resource for the chess community” and Nakamura called him “the best of us.”
In response to Reuters on Wednesday, Kramnik said: “I’d rather tell the whole story, I don’t want to comment on Emil Sutovsky’s statement, but I will comment on the FIDE president.” [Dvorkovich’s] statement, if it appears.”
Kramnik and Sutovsky did not immediately respond to Guardian requests for comment.
As the federation faces pressure to act, FIDE's credibility is in question: not just over its handling of Kramnik, but also over whether it can take into account the darker consequences of the very online revolution that Naroditsky helped orchestrate. The digital age has made chess faster, louder and more visible than ever. This also made the situation more violent.
“Daniel’s smile disappeared after the attacks began,” Zarin said. “We've all seen it. The chess world has lost one of its brightest lights – the man who brought our game to millions.”
