'Very sad news': Tributes as chess grand master dies mid-match
The international chess community has paid tribute to Bangladesh's top-ranked chess grandmaster Ziaur Rahman, who died while playing the game on Friday.
Rahman, 50, suffered a stroke and collapsed on the board in the middle of a national championship match and had a close-to-winning position in the 12th round match, an official said.
He was declared dead at a hospital in the capital Dhaka.
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Ziaur Rahman was the highest ranked player in Bangladesh. Twitter
"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," Bangladesh Chess Federation general secretary Shahab Uddin Shamim told AFP.
The man he was playing, fellow Grand Master Enamul Hossain, said Rahman seemed fine but then quickly realised that was not the case.
"When he was playing, it never felt like he was sick," Hossain said.
Ziaur Rahman. Chess.com
"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".
ChessBase India tweeted about the incident, saying: "We have very sad news coming in. One of Bangladesh's top grandmasters, Ziaur Rahman passed away today while playing in the Bangladesh National Championships. He was 50 years old."
