Nazi Paikidze

Words can’t describe how heartbreaking the passing of my coach, Daniel Naroditsky, is. Just a few days before the Grand Swiss tournament in Uzbekistan which took place a little more than a month ago, I asked him to coach and accompany me. Even though it was a last-minute request and he had to travel across the world to reach Samarkand, he booked his flight and figured everything out within hours. That’s who he was, always there, never hesitating to help. We spent an amazing half month together. I’ll always be grateful for those days and everything I learned from him. Danya was the most genuine person I have ever known. I’ll never forget our late night bullet matches over the past 10 years. he was the only person in the world who regularly beat me in those. Danya, your legacy lives on forever. I’m sure somewhere up there, you’re playing blitz and discussing history with the greats.