Ziaur Rahman, 15-time Bangladeshi chess champion, was a well-known figure in India having played in numerous tournaments across the country over the past three decades.
Rahman collapsed to the ground while playing the 12th round game against Enamul Hossain Rajib at the Bangladesh national chess championship on Friday. He was rushed to Dhaka's Ibrahim Heart Hospital, where he was pronounced dead of a heart attack at 7pm local time.
Rahman's son, Tahsin Tajwar Zia, also plays in the same tournament and was inside the room when the incident occurred.
Rahman is Bangladesh's most decorated chess player, earning his International Master title in 1993 and his GM title in 2002. He competed 17 times for Bangladesh in the Chess Olympiad, setting a record at the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai in 2022. when he and his son Tahsin Tajwar Zia became the first father-son duo to be part of a national chess team.
In 2005 he achieved a score of 2570, which remains the highest by a Bangladeshi chess player. He also made headlines in 2008 when he tied a young Magnus Carlsen (with a 2786 rating at the time).
The news made the chess community nervous and many well-known players offered their condolences.
Indian Chess Federation (AICF) President Nitin Narang expressed his condolences for X: “Deeply saddened by the news of the sudden demise of Bangladesh Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman during the Bangladesh National Chess Championship.
"He was a frequent and highly respected competitor in Indian tournaments. Our deepest condolences go out to his family, his friends and the entire Bangladesh chess community," he said.
Chess grandmaster and coach Srinath Narayanan also expressed his condolences. "A terrible loss for the chess community and for humanity. He was such a nice person. So young, so unexpected." he said.
Rahman collapsed to the ground while playing the 12th round game against Enamul Hossain Rajib at the Bangladesh national chess championship on Friday. He was rushed to Dhaka's Ibrahim Heart Hospital, where he was pronounced dead of a heart attack at 7pm local time.
Rahman's son, Tahsin Tajwar Zia, also plays in the same tournament and was inside the room when the incident occurred.
Rahman is Bangladesh's most decorated chess player, earning his International Master title in 1993 and his GM title in 2002. He competed 17 times for Bangladesh in the Chess Olympiad, setting a record at the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai in 2022. when he and his son Tahsin Tajwar Zia became the first father-son duo to be part of a national chess team.
In 2005 he achieved a score of 2570, which remains the highest by a Bangladeshi chess player. He also made headlines in 2008 when he tied a young Magnus Carlsen (with a 2786 rating at the time).
The news made the chess community nervous and many well-known players offered their condolences.
Indian Chess Federation (AICF) President Nitin Narang expressed his condolences for X: “Deeply saddened by the news of the sudden demise of Bangladesh Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman during the Bangladesh National Chess Championship.
"He was a frequent and highly respected competitor in Indian tournaments. Our deepest condolences go out to his family, his friends and the entire Bangladesh chess community," he said.
Chess grandmaster and coach Srinath Narayanan also expressed his condolences. "A terrible loss for the chess community and for humanity. He was such a nice person. So young, so unexpected." he said.