Chess GM Kramnik fearing for his life after threats over Daniel Naroditsky’s death

Russian chess grandmaster and former world champion Vladimir Kramnik has filed a report after receiving violent threats following the death of chess streamer Daniel Naroditsky.

On October 20, chess grandmaster and popular streamer Daniel Naroditsky died at the age of 29, prompting an outpouring of tributes from fans and fellow players.

Naroditsky, who earned his grandmaster title at 18 and later became a major figure in the chess streaming community, had previously been among several players accused of cheating by Vladimir Kramnik.

While many chess pros demanded that Kramnik be banned from competing and the International Chess Federation launching an investigation, the Russian denies holding any responsibility for Naroditsky’s death.

In a series of posts, Kramnik expressed that he was fearing for his own life as well as his family’s safety after receiving death threats from fans and insisting that he wasn’t suicidal in a now-deleted message.

Kramnik says he isn’t “planning to take his own life” after death threats

In a post on X, Kramnik shared a threatening message he had recieved from someone, saying that if it were up to them, they would have “put a bullet in his head and his wife’s.”

According to the Russian GM, these emails have become a “daily routine.”

“Forces responsible for intiating, promoting the dirtiest slander PR attack will not avoid legal responsibility for that,” he slammed.

In another thread, Kramnik shared a message from his attorney, requesting that safeguards be taken to protect his safety and that those responsible for the threats be identified and prosecuted.

Kramnik further claimed that he had never made any personal attack on Naroditsky and accused the chess community of using his death to “launch an unprecedentedly cynical and unlawful campaign of harassment.”

“I want to share that I am in good physical and mental condition and under no circumstances am I planning to take my own life,” he concluded in a statement that has since been deleted from social media.

The former world champ’s cheating claims have landed him in hot water before, and he was even suspended from prize events on Chess.com for six months for continuing to make cheating allegations, despite many warnings.