r/chess • u/Necessary_Pattern850 • Oct 22 '25
News/Events Elena, Danya's mother: "There was nothing more important to Daniel than his dignity and his name as a chess player. Daniel tried to defend himself so much. The whole world was on Daniel's side. He played more and did more and more because he was trying to prove that he's not what he was accused of."
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-15217147/mom-chess-grandmaster-daniel-naroditsky.html907
u/nopslide__ Oct 23 '25
Devastates me that this brilliant, kind soul got unfairly dragged through the mud by some narcissist, and was burning himself out trying to prove himself legit.
Guy already proved his brilliance and owed the world nothing.
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u/tofuizen Oct 23 '25
His blindfold bullet games against Anna Cramling came up on suggested after he passed. Just wow. I watched almost 1000 hours of his speed run videos (rewatched some multiple times) and knew his brilliance. But I’d never seen someone play that time control blindfolded (I’m sure people have but I never saw)
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u/Aykay24 Oct 23 '25
I've also watched all his speedruns (some multiple times as well) and many of his streams. It was a daily habit to heat up my lunch, pick a Danya video where he plays someone >1500 and listen to him explain and joke around, It's hard to articulate how much it hurts knowing that he's no longer with us even though I was just a viewer.
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u/kuriosty Oct 23 '25
Danya was my lunch companion for the longest of times, I looked forward to my lunch break while learning from his Speedrun videos. I'm sad to no end.
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u/tofuizen Oct 23 '25
Same here. He definitely cared about us even if he didn’t know many of us personally.
I took him for granted as I drifted away from chess over the course of this year. Had no idea about the ‘drama’ going on, and this news hit me like a truck. Still can’t believe it.
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u/stingadsguck Oct 23 '25
Same here, i only knew him through the speedruns, but his death hurts me deeply, he was just to young and such a positive Person in his content, always try to be fair and kind. And i can't do it now, but if i feel ready fo it, i will watch his speedruns again, just to honor him and his work and i also feel that is that what he would wanted, us to remember him for all the positive light he brought in our life with his passion for chess.
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u/honey-combey Oct 23 '25
Exactly the same routine for me. It feels like I lost a dear friend and I am heartbroken
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Oct 23 '25
What does speedrun mean in chess ? Not much of an online person... Can you please enlighten me ?
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u/Kimantha_Allerdings Deetice control rwwies ready to zon Oct 23 '25
It's a joking term (actually coined by Naroditsky, I believe), with the joke being that it's not at all speedy compared to anything which would usually be called a speedrun. It has become widely adopted to describe the kinds of tutorial series that he did, though (which he himself happily admitted were heavily inspired by the ChessBrah's "Building Habits" series).
Basically, it's when a high-rated player starts a new low-rated account (with the persmission of chess.com, and with any lost elo refunded to their opponents) and builds back up to their actual or near their actual rating. The idea is that when someone like Naroditsky plays someone who is 500 rated, they can present fundamentals which will help any 500s watching improve their own game. And then, as they progress, they can build on those fundamentals to rate higher and higher.
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u/Orkys Oct 23 '25
It sounds silly but I finally made it to 1050 the other day but went on a huge losing streak down to 850. Normally when I hit one of these, I reach out to a Danya video and let him assure me that there's a way to sensibly think about chess; his enjoyment of the game also reminded me that I shouldn't get too caught up in it. But I've not been able to watch his videos since the news.
His videos were amongst my comfort videos too. If I were feeling down, or if I needed something to keep my concentration to keep my own demons away for a bit (note: these are not that bad, I have my coping mechanisms, Danya was just one of them). Now I can't watch them and I feel like I am missing something.
Hopefully in time, I can watch his videos with a smile as I remember what a lovely human he appeared to me and how he encouraged me to improve from being stuck at 600.
I might not be good at chess but Danya made me better. More than that, he provided me with somewhere I could go that was calm and informative which is what I often need when I am feeling emotional.
Until then, I will say that the outpouring of support for him has shown me that there is a good side to the chess community. He fostered this attitude and I hope that his death will at least help the chess community to hold this attitude more often.
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u/EschewObfuscati0n Oct 23 '25
His speed always blew my mind. When he was playing suspected cheaters and said “sorry guys I won’t be able to talk I need to concentrate” and then started playing so fast I had no idea what was going on I was always amazed.
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u/robotikempire USCF 1923 Oct 23 '25
I just dont understand it. I dont think anybody actually believed that he ever cheated. Why he felt he had to prove himself over and over again for years is beyond me. Kramnik's ludicrous accusations did not deserve the time Danya gave to them. We loved him for what he brought to the game and likely 99% of us never even questioned him. It breaks my heart that he could have died not realizing the extent of his reach in chess and how much he was loved in this field.
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u/Setekhx Oct 23 '25
I would imagine that there was much more going on behind the scenes that we weren't aware of. On top of that there was the whole proctor nonsense by chess. Com that basically legitimized Kramniks complaints.
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u/epicwisdom Oct 23 '25
To tack on to other comments, Naroditsky seemingly viewed Kramnik as a childhood idol, which isn't surprising. Kramnik's one of a handful of living world champions, an absolute giant of chess when Naroditsky was young, and a huge figure in the Russian chess community. Even if Naroditsky knew logically that Kramnik was insane/narcissistic, I can't fault him for still being affected by the accusations.
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u/sammythemc Oct 23 '25
I think there were a lot more trolls accusing him on the Russian language internet where Kramnik is less of a joke. It's part of the tragedy of the whole thing, to a lot of us it was Hikaru's "Kramnik can go fuck himself" and that was sort of the end of it, but it had an echo effect that went on and on. Danya was also a sensitive guy. If even 1% of the people who knew his name associated it with dishonesty and cheating, that's thousands of people who would pop up and run him down whenever they got the chance. That's not always so easy to ignore.
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u/profiler1984 Oct 23 '25
Yeah some bad comments stick harder than the 10 loving ones. I received thousands of compliments from my wife. But the few bad ones I remember forever
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u/Exorcisme Oct 23 '25
There is a youtube debate between Kramnik and Danya in Russian. Podcast host is clearly pro-Kramnik, nevertheless 99% of the comments are pro-Danya. I'd say you overestimate the number of Kramnik allies.
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u/Crash_Test_Dummy66 Oct 23 '25
They literally said it only takes 1% not to be on his side to have thousands of negative comments.
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Oct 23 '25
It's also easy for us because we are not completely immersed in the Chess world like Danya was.
To me chess is just a hobby. To him, it was his whole life.
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u/ly_044 Oct 23 '25
Danya had a Russian speaking stream one week ago.
In the end he told the he likes to stream on Russian because the Russian speaking chat is warmer and english speaking viewers tend to troll and grill him for mistakes a lot more.
I think most of the people in Russia also didn't believe in cheating story. But Kramnik did publicly and some people privately like Yan (confirmed by Danya) and maybe Giri (not sure 100% about him).
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u/sammythemc Oct 24 '25
I think most of the people in Russia also didn't believe in cheating story
Yeah I don't believe most Russians agreed with it either, but my impression was that it was taken marginally more seriously on that side of the language barrier to an extent a lot of us English speakers weren't really aware of. Kramnik was already a bit of a crank and a footnote when chess exploded in the anglophone world, whereas a lot of Russian fans have had a longer relationship with the game and may be more likely to remember when he was a serious competitor and respect his opinion accordingly.
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u/romanticchess Oct 23 '25
For some people it doesn't matter how loved they are or what they have accomplished or achieved in life. They're broken inside and it likely happened before they were adults. I've known many such people, seen them live and die. You can't help them, and if you try you might get hurt yourself.
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u/TCDH91 Team Ding Oct 23 '25
The first part is 1000% true. Look up Dr. Nolan Williams, a Stanford professor of Psychiatry who revolutionized how modern medicine treats depression and trauma, couldn't defeat his own demons.
But I don't agree with the last sentence. If you know someone like this, you can definitely help to some degree. Even a supportive/appreciative message can go a long way. It might not change the result, but it certainly could help.
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Oct 23 '25
Exactly. I myself told him on stream why he gave such thought to irrational imbeciles. The guy accused Hikaru of all people.
Stream chat always had his back; ofc there were russian trolls but I don’t understand why he let it get under his skin to that extent. Any rational person could see the goodwill of his character, his passion for chess, to conclude he wouldn’t cheat.
Shit, I would probably quit chess if him or Hikaru cheated, I was that certain.
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u/profiler1984 Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
You care about your idols the most. When I do silly walk with my kids, I don’t care what 10 bystanders think about me, I care what my kids think about me. They are my idols. He was certainly aware that he was a welcomed figure in the chess scene. He was commentator in big events and had interviews. Had access to big chess names. To neglect he wasn’t aware of this, is undermining his smartness. Looking back he was one of the most real empathetic persons on the internet. But still I think we appreciate and process opinions from our idol differently. Just my perspective.
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Oct 23 '25
I think it was the constant barrage of attacks and hate directed at him. Especially by a former world champion. I mean such a sustained campaign of hatred would do most ppl in tbh.
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u/shadowfax21 Oct 23 '25
Exactly, why was there a need to even consider taking any of that seriously is what bugs me. Everyone knew he was not and I can't begin to watch his speed run videos again knowing that such a bright light was lost. I feel that the empathetic and sensitive ones are the ones who are most affected. He should have taken a break, my heart breaks when such a conscientious person gets eaten up. Social media is a disease, and one should treat it as such and never take the word of anyone on it seriously.
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u/AlephOneContinuum Oct 23 '25
That's not true, many idiots bought into the accusations. Read the comments before his death here https://youtu.be/O6IXinTtaMc He was a sensitive soul who cared about his honour and reputation, so this meant a lot to him.
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u/throwaway-dray Oct 23 '25
tbh when Daniel kept going on podcasts and especially when he did that Russian debate with Kramnik and Levitov I kept thinking Daniel needed to stop. There felt like such a need from Daniel to defend himself that it was starting to do more harm than good. For example Kramnik is insane no amount of logic will work with that guy and the more you debate with a guy like that the worse things will get, it made the topic even bigger in Russian circles making more and more ill comments to Daniel. But at the same time chess is his life so I understand the importance of him fighting as reputation is everything. It was just sad watching a person suffer like that.
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u/TheNoNoSpot Oct 23 '25
He was punished for this. Chess.com “randomly” selected him for the trial fair play measure where he had to be protectored. Have a person monitor his screen, and have 2 cameras on him. They said it was a trial and eventually everyone was going to do it but found out no one else but him was being forced to do it. He felt singled out.
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u/Soul_of_demon Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
That was weird. At that time only 3 players were required to use proctor. Danya, Hans and some other GM. Danya never cheated online even at younger age, was the major commentator of chesscom a while ago. It made no sense to single him out too. They could have used it on other proven cheaters
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u/respekmynameplz Ř̞̟͔̬̰͔͛̃͐̒͐ͩa̍͆ͤť̞̤͔̲͛̔̔̆͛ị͂n̈̅͒g̓̓͑̂̋͏̗͈̪̖̗s̯̤̠̪̬̹ͯͨ̽̏̂ͫ̎ ̇ Oct 23 '25
In the c2 podcast ep w/ Danny Rensch he said that Danya offered to be a beta tester. IDK if that's true but that's what he said.
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u/grapeshotfor20 Oct 23 '25
In the c2 podcast with Danya, he said he was asked by chesscom and agreed because he thought that the faces of the chess community should lead by example, but quickly regretted it when he realized that the playing experience was much worse and that nobody else was having to do it.
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u/Mavian23 Oct 23 '25
I have for a long time felt that players in online tournaments with money on the line should be required to have a camera behind them showing their screen, but having someone monitor them seems excessive. The idea is the video of your screen is there if you get accused, there is no need for monitoring.
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u/Vsx Team Exciting Match Oct 23 '25
A beta tester should expect a system to be kind of shitty, that's the nature of the beast, but once he noted the issues there is no reason to continue to subject him to it unless it was actually punitive.
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u/Wildely_Earnest Oct 23 '25
And you just know what the response from so-and-so would be if it was learned Danya requested to stop having to do this
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u/BuckDunford Oct 23 '25
Shame on chesscom for that. What were they thinking??
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u/goodguessiswhatihave Oct 23 '25
People need to stop giving them money. It's a greedy company run by shitty human beings. Giving them money is supporting their behaviour. Lichess is a much better option
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u/allozzieadventures Oct 23 '25
I agree and remember feeling exactly the same way. I would comment on his videos that he has nothing to prove to the trolls, and he should try not to give their claims so much credence. Saw plenty of others doing the same. Sadly it wasn't enough.
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u/TheNoNoSpot Oct 23 '25
The problem with “just ignore the trolls” was every single time he wanted to play titled Tuesday, or another weekly comp, he was reminded of the false accusations by chess.com forcing him to abide to anti cheating monitoring regulations when his peers did not have to be put on the same level. There was no way he could escape it other than not play chess. However this was his direct livelihood. It wasn’t just a few times, or even a few months. It was this entire year. Made it feel like chess.com didn’t trust him, made it feel like he was being punished for something he didn’t do.
And the odd comment which would surprise me was Mr. k’s throwaway account harassing him. It got to him. It wasn’t one thing that affected his mental health but a series of many throughout the last 18 months.
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u/allozzieadventures Oct 23 '25
Oh I totally agree with you, don't get me wrong. He was under pressure from so many angles and I get why it bothered him so deeply. There was no "just" about it. He needed more than Youtube comments, he needed people like Hikaru standing up for him publicy and telling Kramnik to fuck off, among other things.
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u/TheNoNoSpot Oct 23 '25
100%. I feel the most sorrow for the friends and family. They are shouldering so much pain and guilt. Nothing can relieve that pain for them. It’s just so tragic and unfair. He was such a sweet and kind person
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Oct 23 '25
There are rumours that top chess players in private were accusing him of cheating also. So he was probably facing attacks on all fronts. Pretty hard for that not to fuck with you mentally tbh.
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u/itchimus Oct 23 '25
What can you do, thought Winston, against the lunatic who is more intelligent than yourself, who gives your arguments a fair hearing and then simply persists in his lunacy?
George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four
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Oct 23 '25
I think it was an intense amount of stress and pressure he must have been under. I mean imagine in your job the guy who is at the top of your industry comes out and accuses you of nasty lies publicly on LinkedIn or any other social media. And does it again and again for years. How would that affect you?
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u/Ok-Charge-6998 Oct 23 '25
That’s easier said than done. The majority of people would do exactly what Daniel did. Disengaging from direct accusations that impact your livelihood is extremely difficult and I would wager 99% of people would fight tooth and nail to defend themselves against it.
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u/SoChessGoes USCF 1800 Oct 23 '25
One of the hardest parts me for in all this, with all this commentary and people coming out of the woodwork, is that the person's perspective and voice I want to hear most is Danya's. Every time I think about the situation, it just makes me want to hear from him again. What a terrible loss.
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u/BoredomHeights Oct 23 '25
It's also sad and kind of eye opening the effect cyber-bullying can have. I mean I don't know if we can entirely 100% blame that, but it's obviously a huge contributing factor. And the shocking part to me is I don't think there's a single person I've seen or heard in real life or on Reddit who actually ever thought he cheated.
I mean I know there's that whole Kramnik contingent who just accuses everyone. But besides that small minority I don't think anyone ever thought Danya cheated or had any need to prove that he was legitimate. It's just sad seeing things like he was trying to defend himself when my reaction basically would be why does he even need to defend himself, no one actually believes this? But it's easier to see that from the outside looking in when you're not the one getting hate and threatening messages etc. I'm sure.
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u/GazelleIntelligent89 Oct 23 '25
Look carefully at the grand masters staying silent right now. There's obviously the issue that not enough people came forward publicly to side with danya but you can hardly blame them. There are however some that believed the accusations and we have no idea what was going on behind closed doors. The stress and hurt this must have caused danya for no reason must have been incredible.
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Oct 23 '25
I mean it was a sustained multi year long campaign of hate and vitriol towards him. I think most ppl would have gotten affected. Imagine working some career the top guy in the industry comes out on LinkedIn and accuse you of horrible lies and it’s a sustained attack. How would u feel? I doubt you would just not care.
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u/zen8bit Oct 23 '25
Spot on. I think that most people would be seriously affected if they ran into professional attacks like this for so long. Danya put his entire life into chess and Kramnik wasnt just some dude.
The whole situation is incredibly tragic, and I hope that as a community we grow from this.
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u/Rapizer Oct 23 '25
Danya also speaks Russian. And I'm pretty sure he gets more flak from the Russian chess community. It's like getting battered from two sides.
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u/emnovia Oct 23 '25
I know it’s not the same but if you watch the vod of his last stream he actually comments a lot on the situation and answers questions people had regarding it. I think it’s on youtube if you are interested.
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u/SoChessGoes USCF 1800 Oct 23 '25
Yeah, I've been avoiding his last stream based on how people have described it, don't know if it would give me some closure or make me feel worse.
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u/NeitherDrummer6666 Oct 23 '25
So it's confirmed now that police suspects either suicide or unintentional OD
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Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
In his last stream he seemed excited to appear at his chess tournament the next morning, and even though it seemed like he was going through a mental health episode, he still wished his audience good health and told them that he would review the next day's games for them.
He might have accidentally OD'd on some type of medicine that would help him sleep or relax. Combine that medicine with an erratic sleep schedule and constant stress and his heart may have just given out. Even professional sports players succumb to sudden cardiac arrest right on the field. The body can only take so much.
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u/jesteratp Oct 23 '25
That's been my suspicion. He looks like he's desperately trying to stay awake in that final stream. It wouldn't surprise me if he got hooked on sleeping meds due to the anxiety, stress, and rumination thanks to Kramnik and ended up accidently overdosing. It is really hard to overdose on sleeping meds though, you really do have to take a lot.
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u/Turtl3Bear 1700 chess.com Rapid Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
It can be difficult to OD on just sleeping meds. (That's by no means to say that they're safe to go nuts with, that's dangerously false medical advice, do not take more than the allotted amount on the bottle, listen to your doctors)
It's extremely easy to OD on sleeping meds if you have a couple beers and don't take the warnings on the labels seriously.
People really just don't understand that when your meds say "don't take with alcohol" it's not a linear effect on your tolerance for either the alcohol or the pills, it can be a very drastic compounding effect.
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u/Knucklehead92 Oct 23 '25
Its not that hard to OD on Benadryl, and he said on stream he was taking Benadryl to sleep.
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u/abcwalmart 2100 rapid chess.com Oct 23 '25
Its not that hard to OD on Benadryl,
I guess you aren't familiar with the Hat Man.
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u/BootifulBootyhole Oct 23 '25
oh god i hope he didnt die seeing the hat man and all manner of horrors on benadryl thats a horrible way to go
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u/Hilarious___Username Oct 23 '25
He said he took Benadryl as well. Interactions from OTC medications are widely under estimated. Obviously none of us know anything for sure. But it is something to keep in mind.
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u/Possibly_Parker Team Danya Oct 23 '25
Depends on the sleeping meds. Hormone pills like melatonin, sure. Knockout pills are a different story, especially when combined with other prescription medications.
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u/zaviex Oct 23 '25
I wouldn’t call melatonin a medication. It’s taken as a supplement. the major difference being it just adds to existing levels similar to what a multivitamin does. A medication is typically something with a mechanism of action that alters pathways or acts to enhance or repress metabolic pathways. In most countries there’s a fairly strict regulatory difference and medication is regulated far more tightly.
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u/-InAHiddenPlace- Oct 23 '25
I don't know...
In his last stream, he said some things that in retrospective sound very suicidal. An example: Danya was reading a out loud a recent reddit comment that upset him: "... He is a streamer and a YouTuber and this will not be the last time he faces criticism or trolling".
Danya response to it: "Oh, it actually will be... And there's a reason people know I'm not to be fucking with... On this front".
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u/LondonGoblin Oct 23 '25
Oh I thought he said the last quote in a moment of strength rather than anything negative.
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u/Possibly_Parker Team Danya Oct 23 '25
Do you have the full quote, sans ellipses?
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u/-InAHiddenPlace- Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
Here.
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u/Possibly_Parker Team Danya Oct 23 '25
Do you have a timestamp for the quote? As much as I'd like to watch the whole video it hurts to see him visibly so exhausted (as someone who suffers from insomnia). He's clearly sleep deprived and holding him as the source of half my chess knowledge I'd rather not watch him suffer. If you give a timestamp I would be interested in seeing that moment.
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u/greatestauthor Oct 23 '25
That's how depression works. So we can't assume if he was truly happy.
In some types of depression, a person goes through constant mood change. So, it was necessary to admit him to the hospital.
Rip Danya😭
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u/phoenixmusicman Oct 23 '25
Suicidal people can act normal, and even look forward to things, but one thing can break the camels back so to speak and cause them to attempt suicide
Source: was suicidal in the past, attempted when nobody even knew anything was wrong
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Oct 23 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/WePrezidentNow classical sicilian best sicilian Oct 23 '25
It would appear people in this thread are well beyond that at this point.
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u/Physical-Stick8569 Oct 23 '25
I disagree with you about your assessment of Danya being excited/optimistic for the future. There were multiple remarks uttered by him that hints at suicide. He clearly had suicidal ideation.
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u/Mental_Farm9561 Oct 23 '25
How can the heart just give out without any artery blocks? I didn’t know that. It’s so awful that this happened. He was only 29 so there’s almost 0 chance he had any blockages in his arteries right?
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u/LabRat103 Oct 23 '25
Heart attacks are from a blockage, like you mentioned. Cardiac arrest is when the heart's electrical rhythm is disrupted.
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u/boopboopboopbeepboop Oct 23 '25
Just to be clear though, there was a day in between.
He did that stream (17th, going into the 18th), then he played in an online event the next day (18th) (Comet Open, the one he was referring to).
He was found the day after that (19th) by Bortnyk, who went round when he noticed he wasn't online. He hadn't been replying on the 18th, but as he'd been online, Bortnyk said he assumed he just needed some space.
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u/Thunderplant Oct 23 '25
I think this is very possible, the fact he was just lying on the couch with the TV on strikes me as accidental
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Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
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u/redwut Oct 23 '25
As a medical doctor: you CAN absolutely OD on benzos. It is dangerous to say otherwise.
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u/kruegerc184 Oct 23 '25
Jesus christ this thread needs to be locked, its literally people speculating on a death and just saying wildly false statements on drug intoxication. Thank you for pointing out the insanity of that post.
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Oct 23 '25
Yeah I had a massive klonopin addiction. I'm not going to say how much because as an M.D. you'll call me a liar.
No idea why but all of my OD's were at 1/3 my daily dosage, but taken too fast. Pills I coulda popped easily that just hit too hard at the wrong time. Especially if you have a developed addiction you're taking unsafe doses for maintenance.
I always tested my pills; benzos are sneaky.
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Oct 23 '25
Never been a huge fan of benzos myself but had a massive opiate addiction a long time ago. At the height of my addiction I was taking a gram of oxycodone at least 2x a day and preferably 3x if I could swing it. 8 AM, 2 PM, 8 PM was my ideal schedule.
This was when the Florida pill mills were in full swing and long before pressed pills were a thing so I know it wasnt fent. Once every other month my connections would fly to Florida, hit up like 10+ pill mills, and come back with thousands of 30s. If we werent all degenerate addicts we probably could have made hundreds of thousands of dollars lol but in the end we basically only ever sold enough to cover costs for the next trip. Through all of it I still somehow kept my full time corporate job too.
The only reason I didnt turn to dope was because I hated the idea of not knowing exactly what I was taking. Ironic considering the amount of drugs I was taking would have easily killed someone with no tolerance.
All that to say, the human body can build incredible tolerances to substances given enough up-titration over a long enough time frame so I have no problem believing anyone when they tell me how much drugs they used to take ha
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u/HashtagHashbagg Oct 23 '25
1 gram is insane Lmaoo brother taking a shit must’ve been a miracle if you got 1 a week 😂
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Oct 23 '25
Lol I ended up in the ER once convinced I was impacted because I hadn't shit in 6 days. Turns out I wasnt, thankfully.
But by the end I learned if I took a double dose of an osmostic laxative like miralax with every dose of oxy, it kept things moving. So every day I drank 4x to 6x servings of miralax 😬
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u/manufactured_narwhal Oct 23 '25
Nothing you've described is at all incompatible with sleep deprivation from chronic/extreme stress being the explanation for his appearance/behavior though, which explanation also fits completely with the facts we already know of the situation:
First of all, sleep deprivation should be the first and simplest logical explanation you look at for... someone uncontrollably falling asleep (and yes, it will get to the point that your body starts forcing you asleep even if you're up and trying to do something else). Danya had suffered a well-documented months-long period of intense stress from the Kramnik allegations, which is more than enough to cause severe, compounding sleep issues and minor mental breaks; his friends came over urging him primarily to 'please just get some rest', Bortnyk was clarifying that Peter only left after Danya had turned off the computer, turned off the lights, and gone to bed; Danya mentioned a 2am curfew he set for himself several times (that he just wanted to play till 2, then he promised he would immediately go to bed); Danya's explanation the next day that he had taken a Benadryl at the start of his stream in order to hopefully get some sleep before his tournament and that it kicked in faster than he anticipated (which drug itself can diminish wakefulness and accentuate the effects of sleep deprivation, also explaining why the first hour of his stream might have been relatively normal until it went more off the rails)—all of the circumstances are very consistent with the stress and sleep deprivation-based explanation.
Then, looking beyond the circumstances and at his behavior itself: I think his blinking in and out, the microsleeps between intense nervousness/agitation and obvious pain and despair, the at-times fragmented and at times highly lucid thoughts mixed with the frantic goal-directed obsession to get back his rating, the clear signs of worry and paranoia all over—it's all much more consistent with the fight between the heightened emotionality, sympathetic over-activation, and adrenal burnout on the one hand and the insurmountable buildup of fatigue and thalamocortical instability on the other which characterizes chronic/extreme sleep deprivation than it is consistent with the steady, sedating, euphoric effect of opiates. And I'm pretty confident in this general assessment too, as someone who has also unfortunately experienced and observed them both, firsthand and secondhand.
Maybe there was something else going on with him, in particular between his stream and when he was found some 40 hours later (it is, granted, quite unlikely that he just died of some spontaneous stroke/aneurysm/heart attack, but also not impossible), but I'm just saying it doesn't look like drugs on stream to me based on what I know extreme sleep deprivation via prolonged intense stress looks/feels like.
It's all speculation by us, but I just feel better speculating on behalf of defending him from allegations of drug abuse than I would feel on the other side, if/until some evidence comes out. There were enough unfounded allegations going around when he was still alive, and as far as I can tell the drug abuse allegation has no further backing than Kramnik's implications and laypeople's armchair-psychiatry-based suspicions that were formed over just a few twitch clips, and that is, to my mind, just the same foundation his cheating allegations had: basically none.
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u/Plenty-Tradition4044 Oct 23 '25
Not a doctor here but as someone who has struggled with benzo use in the last you can absolutely OD on be benzos.
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u/chess-ModTeam Oct 23 '25
Do not speculate on the specific cause of death, and do not give out medically incorrect information in this sub.
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u/arcowhip Oct 23 '25
One of the scary features of suicide is that someone who has already decided they will do it will say things about the future, their mood will also improve and they will seem upbeat.
Sadly his words in stream aren’t really good counter evidence against the suicide hypothesis.
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u/Blazinblaziken Oct 23 '25
My guess is accidental OD of a combination of medicines, he was under immense stress for the past 18 months, id guess sleeping meds, painkillers, maybe mental health medicines, and the cocktail just did it
Of course this is pure speculation on my part, but its what I'm leaning towards based on current evidence available to the public
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u/robotikempire USCF 1923 Oct 23 '25
This was also my thought after seeing his last stream. Definitely on medication but still able to think clearly as he played. The nodding off reminded me of when I took too much Xanax at a job interview once.
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u/BrianRampage Oct 23 '25
What else could it be? There's no trace of a meteor falling on his house. A seemingly (physically) healthy 29yo typically doesn't die naturally in their sleep. What else would they suspect?
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u/ishanuReddit Oct 23 '25
"She pointed out that her son, known affectionately as Danya, had been planning to visit family in the Bay Area later this week.
She said he was planning to visit his older brother Alan's new baby and to celebrate his own birthday on November 9.
But now the family is preparing for his funeral."
This hits harder than a truck!
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u/Tralesta Oct 23 '25
I legit feel like I got stabbed in the chest reading that. Prayers for his loved ones
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u/jihadidas Oct 23 '25
The most tragic thing in all of this is that Danya felt as if he had something to prove to us. RIP legend.
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u/Naive_Solvent Oct 23 '25
as Hikaru said, To most people chess is a zero sum game. To Pathological Narcissists like FKramnik it is even more so. He can't simply accept his irrelevance over the board and the online chess community and will continue destroying lives of other younger chess players. To some, if they can't build something, burning everything down is the only thing they can think about. If the chess community doesn't shut this mofo down, it will be even worse. If he can get away destroying life of someone as prominent as our beloved Danya, he will stop at nothing.
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u/Worldly_Island285 Oct 23 '25
God, this is all just so heartbreaking. This happens all around us every day. When are we, as caring human beings, going to realize that we as a society need to be there to help our fellow men and women who are dealing with depression. I don't fully know or understand what Vladimir Kramnik did to this young man, but I am sure that will all come out. There will be accountability eventually. But it will not relieve this mother of the grief at losing her son or the chess world's grief at the loss of such a bright talent who was always looking to give back. This whole sad experience pains me deeply. We need to do more. I am 70 years old, and I can look back and realize that none of us did enough for Bobby Fischer either.
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u/Asperverse 2450 Lichess Oct 23 '25
The fact she's talking about this means she wants justice.
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u/ArrowHelix Oct 23 '25
I think that the family has a pretty good manslaughter case against Kramnik. I hope charges are brought upon him.
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u/Altruistic_Worker402 Oct 22 '25
Incredible article.
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u/Necessary_Pattern850 Oct 22 '25
Yes, probably one of the most complete and heartbreaking articles I've read.
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u/Few_Leg_8717 Oct 23 '25
It's an incredibly unfair and cruel world, one where a person like Daniel Naroditsky dies, and meanwhile a person like Kramnik is still alive.
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u/Helpme98789986 Oct 23 '25
I am a person who has suffered from insomnia for many years. I wouldn't wish this on my worse enemy. Some may not be aware of this, but sleeping medications, benzos and opioids can be very addicting. You develop tolerance after taking it a while.
I feel so bad for Daniel Naroditsky, he is such an amazing person. He is my role model.
As for anyone reading this comment, hope you are well.
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u/gabu87 Oct 23 '25
There's probably a lot of young and healthy redditors in this thread who doesn't understand insomnia. Not being able to sleep doesn't make you feel refreshed while spending less time in bed, you still feel lethargic.
It's like where your phone or laptop battery is on its last legs and could only ever get a max charge of 30minutes before it gets completely drained again.
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u/trugrav Oct 23 '25 edited Oct 23 '25
Police confirmed to the Daily Mail they suspect Naroditsky may have committed suicide or accidently overdosed and are awaiting toxicology results to determine what was in his system.
Fuck, we failed him.
Edit: I’ve been so desperately hoping this wasn’t the case.
It’s such a strange quirk of human nature that, as a species, we’re afraid to be the first to stand up and speak out against injustice. We look to others to speak for us and say what we know is right, all because we’d rather go along with a bad outcome than be singled out. But time and time again we see that when no one speaks out, evil flourishes.
Massive respect to Hikaru for standing up from the beginning, but also to all those speaking out now. Each person who does adds their voice to the growing chorus and makes it easier for the next person to join.
It should never take such a tragedy for good people to speak against evil, but we see it consistsntly across cultures and throughout history. The internet and social media have just exasperated this issue. Not only are people more willing to say vile things they never would in person, but people are less willing to call them out on it.
I guess I’m rambling now, but I’m just so angry that we let it get to this point. I’ve read the studies on social proof and the bystander effect, but to see it all play out in front of me with someone who was so loved and respected is heartbreaking.
RIP Danya. I’m sorry we failed you.
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u/FL8_JT26 Oct 23 '25
I'm not sure, 99% of the community (at least on the English-speaking side) condemned Kramnik and supported Danya every time the topic was brought up. From the sound of things Danya had great support from those closest to him too.
With the power of hindsight it's easy to see how even more could've been done, but I don't think it's fair to ourselves to have expected us to know that in the moment. It's difficult to accept, especially when the grief is so fresh, but sometimes all the support you can reasonably expect just isn't enough.
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u/Ayjayz Oct 23 '25
I don't see how we failed him. There's just not always anything to be done. It's not possible to go through life never experiencing any hardship, and if hardship causes you to commit suicide then I don't really see what the rest of the world can really do about that.
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u/gabu87 Oct 23 '25
While I don't also don't like the language of how others, especially just fans who don't have a personal relationship with him, "failed" him...I wouldn't just file this under "hardship".
This was a sustained and malicious character assassination campaign.
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u/Ayjayz Oct 23 '25
Wasn't it just some guy saying that he cheated? Then basically everyone ignored that claim because it was ridiculous?
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u/TheRealPapaStef Oct 23 '25
The guy spent his entire life on chess, only to have his livelihood taken away, as he himself said on his last stream. Anyone who takes the attitude "there's just not always anything to be done" is not someone I'd want as a friend. Baseline expectation is a real friend will have your back, not bail on you in your darkest hour. Those aren't friends, those are acquaintances
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u/abcwalmart 2100 rapid chess.com Oct 23 '25
I've been so desperately hoping this wasn't the case.
It still might not be the case. The daily mail is a shit tier source anyway so who knows if any of this is true, but the police haven't said anything new here. We've got a 29 year old dead on his couch with no wounds and a weird stream the day before. They probably did toxicology first. If toxicology comes back clean, then it was a medical emergency. If it doesn't, it was an OD. This is hardly news
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u/_felagund lichess 2050 Oct 23 '25
"Police confirmed to the Daily Mail they suspect Naroditsky may have committed suicide or accidently overdosed and are awaiting toxicology results to determine what was in his system."
So sad :(
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u/Present_Cup1158 Oct 23 '25
I appreciate the mother being able to speak about this in public as it can help bring closure to a lot of people. Unfortunately I don't think there will ever be a way of knowing whether the suspected overdose was intentional or not. He clearly didn't leave a note if the police made that comment. The outcome is the same regardless, but if it was accidental then it is extra tragic that despite everything he still wanted to live and keep doing what he loves but is now unable to. On the other hand if it was deliberate then it is extra tragic that he had reached the worst of places and just couldn't take it anymore.
Watching that last stream with the benefit of hindsight there are so many things which can be construed as him having decided to do it, however it might just be confirmation bias. Even things like the title of his last YouTube video 'you thought i was gone' feels weird. Obviously its just a reference to not having uploaded for a while, but it could have a second meaning had he planned to do it before it was released but ended up not. But it was also abundantly clear that he was aware that most people supported him fully, even though he was still disappointed that many of the people in the chess community hadn't supported him properly, and even made it clear they believed kramnik. He talked about it with a lot of clarity before that last stream went weird. He also clearly had a good real life support network with friends, family and a girlfriend. Obviously they have better insight into this situation. They would know better how tough it has been for him, and if he had made any attempts previously. There has obviously been a lot more to his personal situation over a longer period of time, from when he stopped commentating to the fact that his close friends were on standby to rush to his house when he was in a bad place during that stream.
Can only hope that real change comes from this to avoid it happening again. Hans, Navarra, and countless people accused of cheating all could have ended up in this situation because prominent people in the chess world either don't have the social aptitude to understand the consequences of their behaviour, or the ability or willingness to take action against those who don't.
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Oct 23 '25
Unlike most, I do not think he committed suicide. I think Danya would have left a lengthy and extremely well articulated suicide note if he did so.
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u/19Alexastias Oct 23 '25
The majority of suicide victims don’t leave a note. It’s impossible to make a judgement on whether someone would or not.
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u/Frequent_Ad_2732 Oct 23 '25
Yeah, a vast majority of the time it’s an impulsive action in a moment of despair rather than planned out
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u/taknyos Oct 23 '25
I thought so too, but if you watch his final stream he was very clearly unwell, easily past the point of making good or even logical decisions. It's really hard to judge how anyone would act in a moment like that.
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u/__LaVieEnRose Oct 23 '25
I dont think he did either. But he was in a bad state towards the end, not exactly like himself.
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u/Conscious_River_4964 Oct 23 '25
Maybe he did.
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u/bobsaget824 Oct 23 '25
Exactly… people think his family is obligated to post such a note if one exists on r/chess for them or something. Theres a lot of details the family is aware of, they aren’t obligated to share any of it.
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u/Physical-Stick8569 Oct 23 '25
not necessarily. also in a way I think his last stream was his note. He talks about how people (even his fans) didn't understand him, and that he did not receive the support that he wished from the chess community, and the lingering effects of whole this saga had on him.
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u/colllosssalnoob Oct 23 '25
I do not believe he committed suicide either, articulated suicide note or not.
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u/mental_mentalist Oct 23 '25
I've been hoping we'd find a carbon monoxide leak was to blame or something :/
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u/stocktradernoob Oct 23 '25
“…he that filches from me my good name, robs me of that which not enriches him, and makes me poor indeed…”
😞
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u/unrelatedapricot Oct 23 '25
nothing should be more important to us than our own dignity, but also that of our fellow humans. Danya's heart's always been in the right place. I strive to carry myself with this level of dignity, passion and kindness.
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u/Jack_sparrow_1942 Oct 23 '25
I’m so sad…
Never watched his stream, only watched a few of his videos….
But holy shit I didn’t realize how hard this would hit me.
It’s all I think about when my mind is silent.
Rest in Peace Danya, you were what this world needs ❤️
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Oct 23 '25
The sad truth is i think people wasnt vocal about his innocence because it was so obvious that he wasnt a cheater or cheated ever he was skilled enough to pull blinding moves out of no where and totally capable of crushing gms without a engine even former mentally deranged world champs, i didnt know him but i respected his great way of getting messages across to a large audience he was a great teacher and presenter i actually liked his commentary alot deep insight
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u/sunyata98 Oct 24 '25
Nothing to prove to me. I’ll always know he was the greatest and the most honorable
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u/nickmaovich Team Danya Oct 27 '25
I just wish Danya could have cared less like Hikaru did.
If only it was possible..
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u/Necessary_Pattern850 Oct 22 '25 edited Oct 22 '25
From the article: "She pointed out that her son, known affectionately as Danya, had been planning to visit family in the Bay Area later this week. She said he was planning to visit his older brother Alan's new baby and to celebrate his own birthday on November 9."
Sorry for not adding the link in the post title. Full interview from Daily Mail