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Fabiano Caruana || Former Youngest Grandmaster

An American-born yet purely Italian, Fabiano Caruana is a Chess Grandmaster whose rapid advance into the elite ranks of chess earned him the reputation of a worthy opponent to Magnus Carlsen for the world championship. Currently No. 2 in the World with a rating of 2842, he is one of the eight players in history to pass the 2800 barrier.

Early Life

Born in Miami, Florida, on July 30, 1992, he was first introduced to chess at the age of 5 through an afterschool program in Brooklyn, NY. He lived in the same neighborhood where Bobby Fischer was raised. He played his first tournament at the Susan Polgar Chess Center in Queens, NY, at 5. His first coach was NM Bruce Pandolfini.
In 2002, Caruana was the youngest American to defeat a GM in an official event. Subsequent achievements include being a FIDE master and winning several national scholastic championships and two gold medals in the Pan-American Youth Championships.

Moving to Europe and breaking record

After relocating to Europe in 2005, he officially switched federations to Italy. Though he still has dual citizenship with the U.S. and remains a good-standing Life Member of the USCF. He found homes in Madrid and Budapest, and his coaches were IM Boris Zlotnik and GM Alexander Chernin. While being only 14 years, 11 months, and 20 days old, he beat Bobby Fischer‘s record of being the youngest GrandMaster. He even beat Hikaru Nakamura’s record of being the youngest GM in the history of both Italy and the United States. Fabiano scored one of the best tournament performances in the history of chess at the 2014 Sinquefield Cup in Saint Louis, Missouri. He first cleared with 8.5 points from 10 games and 3 total points clear ahead of Magnus Carlsen, the World Champion, including an astonishing streak of seven consecutive wins.

Present Life

Today, Caruana is a four-time Italian national champion and one of the hottest players globally. He pushed himself up as one of only three players above the 2800 rating barrier. Fabiano even crossed the super-elite threshold after winning the 42nd Sparkassen Chess Meeting in Dortmund, Germany. He clinched the tournament win without losing a game.

Chess And Covid Pandemic

He won the Category 20 2020 Tata Master, scoring two points ahead of second-placed Magnus Carlsen. Consequently, he reached a rating of 2842 on the February FIDE rating list, his highest since October 2014. As the 2018 World Championship runner-up, Caruana automatically qualified for the 2020 Candidates Tournament, which commenced on March 17, 2020. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the tournament got suspended. During postponement, Caruana tied for third place out of eight players with a 3.5 out of 7. The tournament began again on April 19, 2021, and ended on April 28, 2021. Caruana finished with 3 wins, 9 draws, and 2 losses. Out of eight, Caruana tied for third place but later placed at fourth due to tie-breaks.