We recently learned with sadness that GM Igor Naumkin has died.

Igor Gennadyevich Naumkin got his IM title in 1988 and his GM title in 1990, and sported wins over Mikhail Tal and David Bronstein.

He left Russia for Europe searching for better chess opportunities in 1991, eventually settling in Italy. For 30 years, he was a regular at many tournaments throughout Italy and the rest of Europe, always suited up.

He lived a solitary life dedicated entirely to playing chess. Not everyone understood or agreed with his choices but on learning of his untimely death, GM Alexey Shirov said: “He was a good-hearted guy. Still it’s hard to understand what he did with his life. Why play so much, instead of teaching for example?”

Naumkin lived out of a suitcase, carrying neither a computer nor a smartphone, just scoresheets.

In an interview with the Corriere della Sera, he admitted to not preparing for his games, as otherwise he “would arrive tired already”. He preferred to spend his time away from the board enjoying his food and drink with chess friends, letting his innate talent to the rest. He once quipped, “When they try to make me drink more, it backfires for them: I play even better!”

His loss was especially felt across the Italian chess community, to which he gave so much.

GM Igor Naumkin (right) with FM Clarence Psaila at Novi Sad, Serbia, earlier this year. Photo: Courtesy of Clarence Psaila

In recent years, Naumkin was a regular visitor to Malta, no doubt in part due to the close proximity, warm welcome and prevalence of Italian speakers – a language he spoke fluently. He participated in a number of local tournaments organised by ChessOrg.de and Clarence Psaila.

At the 2018 Malta Open, he finished 13th with 6/9, while at the last edition, in November 2019, he ranked clear second with 7.5/9. In May 2019, he won the XYChess Spring Open A with 6.5/9, ahead of Robert Zerafa, and also conducted a simultaneous exhibition. 

He had recently spent some months in Novi Sad, Serbia, playing in Third Saturday IM and GM/IM tournaments, where he also ran into Psaila. He returned to Italy, winning a weekend tournament in Pegli, Genoa, on July 3 with 4½/5 points and holding a lecture at the Luigi Centurini chess club.

Intending to visit the Russian consulate in Genoa about his lost passport before resuming his travels, he stayed with friends in Asti, which would become his eternal resting place on July 13. On August 10, he would have turned 57.

Farewell Igor.