Bangladesh’s Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman Unexpectedly Passed Away during National Championship

Bangladesh’s esteemed Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman unexpectedly passed away during his participation in the national championship.

Ziaur Rahman, Bangladesh’s highest-ranked chess grandmaster, passed away unexpectedly on Friday at the age of 50. During a national championship match, he suffered a stroke and collapsed at the chessboard, according to an official statement.

The General Secretary of the Bangladesh Chess Federation, Shahab Uddin Shamim, informed AFP that Ziaur experienced a sudden collapse during the 12^th round of the championship match against fellow grandmaster Enamul Hossain. Regrettably, he was pronounced deceased upon arrival at a hospital in the capital city of Dhaka.

“Players and officials present in the hall room took him to the hospital quickly after he collapsed. Upon reaching there, doctors said he had already died,” Shamim said.

Enamul indicated that it took a few moments for him to comprehend that he had experienced a severe stroke.

“When he was playing, it never felt like he was sick,” said Enamul.

“It was my move. So, when he was falling down, I thought he was leaning down to pick up a water bottle. But then he collapsed, and we rushed him to the hospital. His son was playing at the next table”.

Ziaur Rahman is the most distinguished chess grandmaster among Bangladesh’s five grandmasters.

The individual has achieved multiple national championship victories and represented Bangladesh in the 44^th Chess Olympiad held in India during the year 2022.