FIDE confirms Ethan Vaz’s Grandmaster title, officially making him the current youngest GM in India and the second-youngest GM in the world
FIDE has officially confirmed the Grandmaster title of Goa’s chess prodigy Ethan Vaz, making him the current youngest Grandmaster in India and the second-youngest Grandmaster in the world.
The FIDE announcement published on October 7 stated that the title was approved at the 3rd FIDE Council Meeting of 2026, held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on September 27, following the recommendation of the FIDE Qualification Commission.
Ethan had completed all the requirements for the Grandmaster title on June 27, 2026, at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 24 days, when he secured his third and final GM norm at the Chess Summer in Sarajevo – GM Mix in Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina. He won the nine-round international tournament undefeated, scoring 7 points from 9 rounds, with five wins and four draws.
Three GM norms. Three tournament victories.
A particularly distinctive aspect of Ethan’s Grandmaster achievement is that all three of his GM norms were earned while winning the respective international Grandmaster tournaments.
His first GM norm came at the GM4 Festival Šaha Bijeljina 2025 in Bosnia & Herzegovina in October 2025. Ethan secured the norm with a round to spare before going on to win the tournament.
His second GM norm followed at the GM Mix 11 Fantastico in Senta, Serbia, in January 2026. Needing a victory in the final round, with the black pieces, Ethan defeated a 2395-rated FIDE Master to secure the norm and went on to win the tournament.
The third and final norm came in Sarajevo in June 2026, where Ethan once again won the international Grandmaster tournament while completing all the requirements for the title.
Ethan had already crossed the required FIDE rating of 2500 in November 2025, when he won the RUDAR XXV – GM Round Robin tournament in Požarevac, Serbia, while remaining undefeated.
From the World’s Youngest IM to the World’s Second-Youngest GM
Ethan’s Grandmaster title adds another major milestone to a career that has progressed rapidly from age-group chess to international elite competition.
In January 2024, at the age of 12 years and 4 months, Ethan became the then world’s youngest International Master.
Since first representing India internationally at the age of seven, Ethan has won 30 international championship medals for India — 11 Gold, 10 Silver and 9 Bronze. He has also won 10 National Championship medals while representing Goa, and is the reigning National Junior (Under-19) Chess Champion, having achieved the feat at just 14 years of age.
In 2023, Ethan reached World No. 1 in Under-12 Blitz and World No. 2 in Under-12 Classical rankings. He is currently India No. 1 and World No. 3 in Under-15 Classical rankings.
Ethan’s competitive chess journey began in Goa. After taking up chess at the age of six and receiving just a few months of coaching, he represented Goa at the National Under-7 Chess Championship in Tumkur, Karnataka, in July 2018, finishing 13th and earning a place in the Top 20 prize list. At the age of seven, he went on to represent India for the first time internationally at the Asian Youth Chess Championships in Sri Lanka in 2019.
“My dream is to become World Champion”
Speaking after completing the Grandmaster requirements in June, Ethan said:
“It has been my goal since the time I started playing chess, and I am glad to have achieved the Grandmaster title. I will continue to work on my game and try to achieve my dream of becoming the World Champion.”
Ethan now turns his attention to competing at an even higher level of international chess and continuing his pursuit of his long-term ambition of becoming a World Champion and World No. 1.
Gratitude from Ethan’s parents
Ethan’s parents, Edwin Vaz and Linda Fernandes, expressed their gratitude to everyone who has supported his journey over the years.
“From enjoying chess as a hobby to winning medals for the country, becoming the then world’s youngest International Master and, now, the world’s second-youngest Grandmaster, it has been a spectacular journey. We have had to make a lot of sacrifices along the way — Ethan’s schooling, our professional careers, financial wellbeing, social events, family functions, and much more. As they say, it takes a village to raise a child. It takes much more to raise a champion, and we are extremely grateful to each and every person who has supported Ethan along the way,” said Edwin Vaz.
Linda Fernandes added:
“We would like to thank Ethan’s coaches Prakash Vikram Singh, GM Swayams Mishra and GM Srinath Narayanan for nurturing Ethan and helping him reach this level. We would also like to thank Chola Chess Academy, Pro Chess Training and associated coaches, especially GM RB Ramesh, for their guidance and mentorship. We are especially grateful to Ethan’s sponsors — Geno, HelpChess Foundation, QuantBox, Group e4 and The King’s School — as well as all our friends and well-wishers who contributed towards Ethan’s crowdfunding campaign, for making the journey financially possible. We are also grateful to GCA, AICF, SAG, DDSY and SAI for their help and support during Ethan’s journey.”