Child Beats Grandmaster ... Chess Prodigies' Achievements

Child Beats Grandmaster – Chess Prodigies' Achievements

Some Chess Records Summarised by Leonard Barden

Last Edited on Tuesday 07 September 1999 at 23:56

Judit Polgar beat GM Mato Damjanovic at blitz at age 7, though probably not in official competition.
David Howell (8 years 9 months) is the youngest boy to beat a GM at blitz and in official competition, and probably the youngest player to do so in official competition (versus GM John Nunn, Mind Sports Olympiad, 1999)
Murugan Thiruchelvam (10 years 3 months) is the youngest player to beat a GM at rapidplay (versus GM Jon Levitt, London 1999)
Samuel Reshevsky (10 years 11 months*) beat former world title challenger David Janowski at New York 1922 in a pre-FIDE international tournament. Janowski was clearly GM strength even though he did not officially hold the title. *However it is now widely believed that Reshevsky's actual age was two years older than that stated at the time.
Hikaru Nakamura (11 years 2 months) is the youngest to beat a GM in a weekend congress (versus GM Alex Stripunsky at the North Carolina Open).
Judit Polgar (11 years 4 months) is the youngest to beat a GM in a FIDE rated event (versus GM Lev Gutman, Brussels OHRA, 1987)
Hikaru Nakamura (11 years 8 months) is the youngest boy to beat a GM in a FIDE-rated event (versus GM Alejandro Hoffman, 1999 US Open). Luke McShane/Surya Ganguly (11 years 11 months) were the youngest boys to beat a GM in FIDE rated events until Nakamura.

However – the world's most promising sub-teen currently (September 1999) is none of the above but Teimur Radjabov (12 years 5 months), FIDE rating 2438, reigning World and European U12 champion (Nakamura disappointed in the World U12 and Murugan in both U10s), who scored 6½/11 in the Biel Open against stronger opposition than Nakamura's in the US Open.

Radjabov is having training from Korchnoi and, like Kasparov, comes from Baku.

Radjabov,T (2438) - Schmidt,J (2301)
Biel MTO (7), 26.07.1999
1 Nf3 Nf6 2 b3 g6 3 Bb2 Bg7 4 g3 d6 5 d4 0-0 6 Bg2 c5 7 0-0 cxd4 8 Nxd4 d5 9 c4 dxc4 10 bxc4 Na6 11 Nc3 Nc5 12 Nb3 Qb6 13 Ba3 Nxb3 14 Qxb3 Be6 15 Rac1 Rac8 16 Nd5 Nxd5 17 cxd5 Bg4 18 Qxb6 axb6 19 Bxe7 Rxc1 20 Rxc1 Ra8 21 d6 Bf8 22 Bd5 Bxe2 23 Rc7 Bg4 24 Bf6 Bg7 25 Bxg7 Kxg7 26 Rxf7+ Kh6 27 Rxb7 1-0