9-Year-Old Roman Shogdzhiev Becomes Youngest Ever To Score IM Norm

At just nine years old, FM Roman Shogdzhiev has broken the record to become the youngest player in history to score an international master (IM) norm. He is also one of just three players to cross the 2300 barrier before age 10.

The exceptional feat occurred during the RadnickiChess IM tournament in Belgrade, Serbia in December. In a field with two grandmasters and two international masters, Shogdzhiev scored 7/9, losing to only tournament winner GM Suat Atalik in round eight.

The norm was never in doubt. Shogdzhiev secured the norm with an 11-move draw against GM Branko Damljanovic, who finished third in the event. That gave the nine-year-old a performance rating of 2452, earning him a gain of 88 rating points.

Shogdzhiev also had several hard-fought games, such as a 61-move draw, and another win that lasted 84 moves. A key win came in round six where he took advantage of a big blunder.

It's an impressive result by the Russian youngster, who scored his first IM norm at 9 years, 10 months and 7 days, almost a month younger than IM Faustino Oro when he scored his first norm in 2023. By comparison, GM Abhimanyu Mishra, the world's youngest-ever grandmaster, achieved his first IM norm when he was 10 years and 9 months, almost a year older.

Just three weeks before his norm, Shogdzhiev became the World U10 Champion with 10/11. He also won the World Youth Under 8 Championship in 2023 (with 11/11) and the European Youth Under 8 Championship (with 9/9) in 2022.

In a comment to Chess.com, Shogdzhiev said: "I am happy with my results this year. I did quite well in many ways and played well. Next year I set myself the goal of getting the title of international master."

Next year I set myself the goal of getting the title of international master.

—Roman Shogdzhiev

His January classical rating of 2349 makes him the world's highest-rated player under 11 and one of just three players to ever achieve a published 2300 rating before turning 10. FM Ethan Pang, who has the record as the youngest to reach the mark, is the other one in addition to Oro.

His parents told Chess.com that Roman's performances lead to increased pressure. "Roman will be looked at as a rising star of chess, and now he will have to live up to high expectations. At the same time, success gives confidence in his abilities. Roman certainly feels that he is capable of a lot, and this will give him additional motivation."

Shogdzhiev's talent particularly shows in speed chess, as evidenced by his FIDE blitz rating of 2418. He regularly delivers grandmaster performances, such as in a recent blitz tournament where he beat strong GMs such as Andrey Esipenko, Vladimir Potkin, Ernesto Inarkiev, and Aleksey Dreev.

He was just eight years old when he made headlines by beating five grandmasters during the 2023 World Rapid & Blitz Championship. The feat even raised GM Magnus Carlsen's eyebrows, telling Norwegian TV: "It's fun to see—maybe we'll see him at the very top in a few years."

Back in 2021, when he was just six, he showed off his skills in a viral YouTube video that has racked up almost 3 million views.

The rise of Shogdzhiev is emblematic of a new generation of young players who took up chess during the pandemic. In addition to Pang and Shogdzhiev, WFM Bodhana Sivanandan, who became the youngest to ever score a WIM norm, was born in 2015. The third-highest rated in that group is currently Attila Orman, son of WGM Turkan Mamedjarova and nephew of GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.

Born in Elista, Kalmykia—a region once synonymous with chess under former FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov—Shogdzhiev now resides with his family near Moscow. He recently secured a sponsor deal with a law firm.