Goa’s Ethan Vaz has once again made India proud, clinching five medals at the Western Asia Youth Chess Championships 2025, held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, from April 20 to 29. With this feat, Ethan’s all-time medal tally for India has climbed to 21.
The championships comprised three formats—Rapid, Standard (Classical), and Blitz—and was organized by the Tajikistan Chess Federation under the auspices of the Asian Chess Federation and FIDE.
Competing in the Under-16 (Sub-Junior) Open category, Ethan secured individual medals in all three formats: Silver in Standard, Silver in Rapid and Bronze in Blitz. He also led from the front to bag Team Bronze medals for India in Standard and Rapid formats. Notably, Team India had only two players in this category—competing against full three-member teams from countries like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan—making the team medals a particularly commendable achievement.
At just 13 years old, Ethan was eligible for the Under-14 category but opted to challenge himself by playing in the higher Under-16 category, consistent with his long-term development strategy. His selection to represent India in the higher age group followed from his medal-winning performance at the Sub-Junior (Under-15) National Chess Championship 2024. It may be noted that earlier Ethan had won the Gold Medal at the Commonwealth Chess Championships, 2024, while similarly challenging himself in the Under-16 category.
This year’s edition of the Western Asia Youth Chess Championships saw participation from 391 players across 13 countries, including 37 titled players.
“I was hoping for gold, but a consistent performance with podium finishes in all formats is an accomplishment to be very proud of,” said Ethan.
Goa Chess Association officials congratulated Ethan on his stellar performance and wished him continued success. “We are immensely proud of Ethan’s stellar performance and wish him continued success,” said GCA President Mahesh Candolkar. GCA Secretary Ashesh Keni was all praises for Ethan. “Congrats to Ethan and his family for his remarkable achievements. I specially thank his parents for continuously taking him on the right path and am sure that we will have many more successes ahead,” he said. Encouraging other budding players to follow in Ethan’s footsteps, he further said, “My appeal to other parents is to take Ethan’s lead and follow the focussed path of chess to take your children to greater heights. Congrats once again Ethan!”. GCA Treasurer Vishwas Pilarnkar and other GCA officials also congratulated Ethan on his huge success.
“We are very grateful to Ethan’s coaches, sponsors, The King’s School, and all our well-wishers for their unwavering support,” said Ethan’s mother, Linda Fernandes. “We also thank AICF, GCA, SAI, and SAG for their constant encouragement and assistance.”
Ethan and his father are currently en route to India, with their travel plans disrupted due to a last-minute cancellation of their connecting flight following the closure of Pakistan’s airspace—a consequence of the recent Pahalgam terror attack.