Golden prospects: Faustino Oro

The emergence of prodigious chess talent has always exerted a peculiar fascination. From Capablanca’s youthful brilliance to the meteoric ascents of Fischer, Kasparov and Carlsen, every generation produces a handful of players whose progress appears to compress years of learning into mere months. The latest name to command worldwide attention is the 12-year-oldArgentinian wunderkind Faustino Oro.

His introduction to chess was remarkably modest. During the global lockdown six years ago, his father Alejandro taught him the game simply as an absorbing pastime. What neither could have anticipated was the astonishing speed with which natural aptitude would reveal itself. Leisure rapidly gave way to serious study, and ordinary childhood diversions were replaced by an insatiable appetite for chess improvement.

Alejandro coined the memorable expression “Fausti years” to describe this extraordinary phenomenon, observing:

“A solar year is 365.25 days. On each planet, it is different. In Fausti’s world, it has its own measure of time as well… three months of Fausti’s chess learning is equivalent to at least five years of an average player.”

The phrase is apt. Within six months, the novice who had only recently mastered the movement of the pieces was already defeating his father with sophisticated tactical ideas, including a well-conceived rook sacrifice. Recognising that such exceptional talent demanded equally exceptional opportunities, the family relocated to Spain, seeking stronger competition while striving to preserve as normal a childhood as circumstances permitted.

Alejandro later reflected:

“As a parent, you never imagine that teaching your son to play chess could be a turning point in your family life.”

The subsequent rise was little short of spectacular. Within a year, Oro had become Argentina’s Under-8 Champion and the world’s highest-rated player in that age category. A Pan-American Under-10 title and the Candidate Master title followed, before he secured the FIDÉ Master title and his first International Master norm as his rating surged towards the 2400 mark. It was scarcely surprising that commentators began referring to Faustino as “the Messi of chess”, if not the Mephistopheles of chess.

His performances in 2024 confirmed that the early promise was neither due to diabolical conjuring nor an illusion. Victories over elite opposition, qualification for the 2025 FIDÉ World Cup through an outstanding Continental Championship performance, the distinction of becoming the youngest International Master in history at that time, and an online bullet victory over Magnus Carlsen all combined to reinforce the impression that a genuine phenomenon had arrived.

The historical lists of the youngest grandmasters provide useful perspective. Abhimanyu Mishra remains the youngest player ever to attain the title, with Oro immediately behind him, ahead of such illustrious names as Sergey Karjakin, Gukesh Dommaraju, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and Magnus Carlsen. Such company is impressive in itself, for these lists have often served as a reliable guide to future contenders for the highest honours.

Another youthful star whose progress has captured international attention is the Turkish grandmaster Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus. His emphatic 5-1 victory over former World Champion Veselin Topalov represented far more than an excellent match result. Beginning with a rating of 2687, Erdogmus required a substantial margin of victory to surpass the coveted 2700 barrier. After an opening draw, he proceeded to dominate the contest, winning four of the remaining five games and becoming the youngest Turkish player ever to cross that celebrated threshold.

Such victories carry symbolic significance. To defeat a former classical FIDÉ World Champion so comprehensively is a rare achievement at any age; to accomplish it as a teenager inevitably invites comparison with the greatest youthful breakthroughs in chess history.

Erdogmus’s success was no isolated occurrence. European youth titles, an exceptionally early Grandmaster title and increasingly impressive performances against established elite players had already marked him out as one of the game’s outstanding prospects. His victory over Topalov at the Tata Steel Masters had offered an early indication that he possessed not merely talent, but genuine competitive strength against the world’s leading professionals.

The Monaco encounter confirmed that impression. The opening game ended peacefully despite Topalov enjoying slightly the better chances, but thereafter the momentum shifted decisively. Erdogmus combined precise calculation with mature positional judgement, repeatedly exploiting small inaccuracies before converting his advantages with admirable technical assurance.

Chess has always renewed itself through remarkable young talents. Whether Faustino Oro and Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus ultimately emulate the careers of the great champions remains to be seen. Yet their achievements already suggest that a new generation is advancing with uncommon speed, enriching the game with fresh ambition, fearless imagination and an increasingly sophisticated understanding of modern chess.

Faustino Oro vs. Gerhard Lorscheid

Sardinia Open, Orosei, 2026, round 1

1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 e5 4. Nf3 Nbd7 5. Rg1

I have played Phildor’s defence many times myself, including achieving a draw against Karpov. However, I had never envisaged this early commitment of the rook, a deployment which becomes justified in a further nine moves!

5 …g6 6. g4 exd4 7. Nxd4 Bg7 8. Be3 Nc5?!

8… d5 proved possible for black in Kosteniuk-Makarian, chess.com INT, 2025, while the safe and simple 8… O-O, is also good. But after the move played, white has a tangible initiative.

9. f3

Following the 33-move win for white: Royal-Dignam, London, 2025, which continued 9… h5.

9… O-O 10. Qd2?!

A routine and definitively incorrect continuation. 10. Qe2 maintains white’s momentum whether black responds with either 10… c6, …Qe7 or …Re8.

The move played risks the complications that can arise after the equalising sacrifice 10… Bxg4!, when white cannot capture with 11. fxg4? for fear of running into the retort 11… Nfxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Qg2 Qh4+ when black stands much the better. White must instead continue with 11. O-O-O or Rxg4, and accept that black has equalised the position.

10… Re8?!

Missing the opportunity sketched previously; returning to white his sizeable advantage.

11. O-O-O Bd7?!

Although 11… Nfd7 proved decisive for black in Sokac-Plat, chess.com INT, 2023, it is not a good move. The best move black has here, is a pale imitation of the tactic already mapped, with 11… Bxg4 12. fxg4 Ncxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4, when white remains somewhat better.

12. Kb1?!

This is not a bad move, but as we shall see, white could instead play immediately, the near-decisive sacrificial offer 12. Nf5! as after 12… Bxf5 13. gxf5 Kh8 14. h4, white can unleash a devastating attack on the black king’s position.

12… Na4?!

Black stakes everything on opening up some attacking lines on the queenside, without appreciating the peril his king will soon be in.

13. Nxa4 Bxa4 14. Nf5!

White finally delivers the threat available since his twelfth move.

14… gxf5 15. gxf5 Kh8

The best move for black, but white is, in any case, close to winning.

16. Rxg7?!

Not nearly as strong as 16. Bc4! or Bd4!, but this sacrificial blow must have been devastating to receive in open play. If white is permitted to pin the f6-knight, black will be demolished on his dark squares.

16… Kxg7 17. Bd4 h6 18. Bc4!?

White is again, understandably overeager. The most effective continuation follows 18. b3! when black must lose either the a4-bishop, or the f6-knight. For example, after 18… Bd7 19. Bc4 Rg8 20. Qc3 Qe8 21. Bxf6+!!, white is material up and is winning.

18… Qe7??

Black is still worse after either, 18… Rg8 or …d5, but can survive at the cost of losing the f6-knight. After the text, it is hopeless for black.

19. Qc3 Rg8 20. b3 c5 21. Bxf6+ Black resigns 1-0

Black’s queen is unrecoverable, for example, 22… Qxf6 22. Rg1+ Kh7 23. Qxf6 Rxg1+ 24. Kb2 Be8 25. Qxd6 and wins.

Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus vs. Andy Woodward

Jeddah Young Masters, 2024, round 1

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 d5 3. Nd2 g6 4. Bxf6 exf6 5. e3 Bd6 6. c4 dxc4 7. Bxc4 O-O 8. Ngf3 a6 9. O-O b5 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. a4 bxa4 12. Rxa4 c5 13. Be4 Ra7 14. Qc2 cxd4 15. Rxd4 Qe7 16. Rd1 Rc8 17. Nc4 Bc5 18. Bxb7

A cautious expedition by both has given rise to this equal position of tension and potential. After the natural continuation 18… Qxb7 19. Rd5 Kg7, whether white proceeds with a) 20. h3 Rc7 21. Qe4 Nd7 22. Nd4 Nb6 23. Nxb6 Bxb6 24. Ne2 Rc5 25. Nc3 Rxd5 26. Nxd5; or perhaps b) 20. h4 h5 21. e4 Be7 22. e5 Qc6 23. b3 Rd7 24. Rxd7 Nxd7 25. Nd4 Qc7 26. e6 Nf8 27. exf7, chances remain level and the game is still in play.

18… Rxb7??

Neglecting the rather significant detail that after the inevitable 19. Nd6, 19… Bxd6 is not available due to the unprotected c8-rook. Nor is white’s play merely to win the exchange.

19. Nd6! Rcc7??

Prosaically, either a) 19… Qc7 20. Nxc8 Bxd4 21. Nxd4 Qxc2 22. Nxc2 Rxb2 23. Nd4; or b) 19… Rc6 20. Nf5 Bxd4 21. Nxe7+ Rxe7 22. Qa4; are slightly better, yet both also losing.

20. Nf5!! Black resigns 1-0

It is this move that is the horror of the plot. After the threatened 21. Rd8+, Black’s bolt hole on g7 is covered. But the queen is now attacked in addition to the back rank threats.

Black can either take the knight, or move the queen. Both lose eventually, for example:

20. a) 20… gxf5 21. Rd8+ Qxd8 (21… Kg7? 22. Nh4 Qe4 23. Nxf5+) 22. Rxd8+ Bf8 23. Qb1 Rd7 24. Rxd7 Nxd7 25. g3 Ne5 26. Nd4 a5 27. Qxf5 Rxb2 28. Qxf6; or
21. b) 20… Qf8 21. Rd8 Nc6 22. Rxf8+ Bxf8 23. Ng3 f5 24. h4 a5 25. h5 Nd4 26. Qd2 Ne6 27. Qxa5 Rxb2 28. Nd4; with long tortuous routes before the inevitable capitulation.

The June issue of British Chess Magazine has an excellent extended reportage, comparing the two Wunderkinder, which proved invaluable in my  assembly of data for this column.

Ray’s 206th book, “ Chess in the Year of the King ”, written in collaboration with Adam Black, and his 207th, “ Napoleon and Goethe: The Touchstone of Genius ” (which discusses their relationship with chess) can be ordered from both Amazon and Blackwell’s. His 208th, the world record for chess books, written jointly with the late chess playing artist, Barry Martin,  Chess through the Looking Glass ,  is now also available from Amazon. 

A Message from TheArticle

We are the only publication that’s committed to covering every angle. We have an important contribution to make, one that’s needed now more than ever, and we need your help to continue publishing throughout these hard economic times. So please, make a donation.