On September 12, 2025, a 15-year-old Iranian grandmaster shocked the online chess world again. Sina Movahed, the youngest GM in Iran’s history, clinched his second consecutive Freestyle Friday victory on Chess.com, finishing ahead of world-class names including Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Denis Lazavik, and Dmitry Andreikin.
His win was not just another junior talent scoring an upset. It was proof of a steady rise that began years ago in Ahvaz, Iran, where a boy once played chess casually with his uncle — and decided he wanted to be like Magnus Carlsen.
From Ahvaz to the World Stage
Born on May 27, 2010, into a family of educators — his father a physics teacher and his mother a judicial employee — Movahed’s chess story started at age seven. What began as a hobby quickly turned serious. By eight and nine, he was already training up to eight hours a day.
His first breakthrough came at the Iran U-8 Blitz Championship, followed soon after by a stunning gold at the 2020 FIDE World Youth Rapid Chess Championships, held online during the pandemic. “I want to follow up the chess and become senior world champion,” he said in an interview at age 10. Asked about his role model, he didn’t hesitate: “I like Magnus Carlsen. I want to be like him and achieve great success at that level.”
By 13, Movahed had gained nearly 300 rating points in half a year, earning the FIDE Master title. In January 2024, he cracked the top 100 juniors worldwide and became an International Master. That October, after defeating several established grandmasters at the Baku Open, he achieved his third GM norm and surpassed the 2500 rating mark. At 14 years and one month, Movahed officially became Iran’s youngest grandmaster, breaking Alireza Firouzja’s record.
Achievements Across Formats
Though still a teenager, Movahed’s chess résumé already looks remarkable:
- 2020 World Cadet & Asian Cadet Champion (online).
- 2022 World U12 Silver Medalist.
- 2022 Olympiad U16 Board 4 Gold Medalist.
- 2024 Baku Open Co-Champion with a 2726 performance rating.
- 2024 World Blitz U20 Silver Medalist.
- 2025 Freestyle Friday Double Champion, defeating Carlsen and finishing ahead of multiple elite GMs.
He has also proven fearless against top competition. At 13, he stunned the chess community by demolishing GM Parham Maghsoodloo 9–1 in a blitz match online. Clips of his tactical precision circulated widely, drawing comparisons to Firouzja’s early exploits. He has even scored online wins against Hikaru Nakamura.
One Reddit commenter summed it up after his blitz dominance: “Extraordinary blitz performances like this are a good sign. They’re the first signs of incredible potential that you’d expect to see from an underrated and very young player.”
Beating Carlsen A Few Times — and Beyond
In September 2025, Movahed’s back-to-back victories in Chess.com’s Freestyle Friday series made international headlines. His tournament on September 12 included a crisp 28-move win over Magnus Carlsen in round seven, a result that instantly turned heads.
At one point, the teenager was on a perfect 7/7 score before drawing Nakamura and slipping against Lazavik. But he steadied himself, defeated Andreikin in the final round, and secured first place outright with 9.5/11 points. The $400 prize was symbolic compared to the prestige of finishing above Carlsen and a field of over 100 titled players.
The win was not his first against Carlsen either. Earlier in the summer, Movahed had also edged the Norwegian in a Freestyle Friday, highlighting his rapid improvement.
A Symbol for Iran’s New Generation
Iran has become one of the fastest-rising nations in chess, with Firouzja, Maghsoodloo, and Tabatabaei establishing themselves in the 2010s and 2020s. Movahed now looks like the next name to carry that torch.
On Iranian forums, fans note that he had to fund many of his own trips abroad, attending tournaments in Baku and the Emirates largely at his family’s expense. The sacrifices have paid off. As one commentator put it: “He’s fearless. Takes risks against higher-rated players. Doesn’t play for a draw.”
In just 15 years, Sina Movahed has gone from a boy imitating Carlsen to a teenager beating him. His FIDE rating of 2580 (September 2025) places him among the world’s strongest juniors, and with continued growth, Iran may soon have another global contender on its hands.
When asked about his goals as a child, Movahed said: “I want to become senior world champion.” Today, he’s closer than ever to making that dream a reality.
I’m Xuan Binh, the founder of Attacking Chess, and the Deputy Head of Communications at the Vietnam Chess Federation (VCF). My chess.com and lichess rating is above 2300, in both blitz and bullet. Follow me on Twitter (X).
