Vietnamese chess prodigy Dau Khuong Duy ranks third globally in U15 category

Vietnamese chess talent Dau Khuong Duy has secured the third position globally in the U15 age category, a significant achievement in the competitive world of youth chess. Born in 2011, Duy has not yet reached his 15th birthday, allowing him to maintain his high ranking in this elite U15 group.

According to FIDE's updated rankings in early June, Duy, with an Elo rating of 2521, is also ranked 37th worldwide among U20 players. Experts consider the U15 rankings particularly indicative of emerging "prodigies" in the intellectual sport, especially given the increasing youthfulness of top-level chess. This is exemplified by 20-year-old World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju.

In the U15 rankings, Duy was previously behind Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus of Turkey and Faustino Oro of Argentina. However, a recent shift saw India's Vaz Ethan surpass Duy by a single Elo point. Crucially, Yagiz Erdogmus recently turned 15, disqualifying him from the U15 rankings and allowing Duy to retain his third-place standing. This position is a source of national pride, especially considering the consistent emergence of chess prodigies from countries like the United States, Russia, China, and India.

Currently, no player in the U15 "prodigy" group holds the Grandmaster title. Dau Khuong Duy has surpassed the 2500 Elo mark and secured two of the three necessary Grandmaster (GM) norms. Achieving one more GM norm within the next month would place him in the esteemed "club of chess prodigies," similar to his compatriot Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, who also became a Grandmaster before his 15th birthday. Duy's progress positions him to potentially become the top-ranked young player globally.