11-year-old Russian IM Roman Shogdzhiev spoke about his motivation and future goals. Roman notes that his aim is to overtake Faustino Oro by rating.

Roman Shogdzhiev

Roman Shogdzhiev

Youngest IM in history

“I feel very calm about Faustino Oro. But, of course, I want to catch up to him and surpass him! We’re not friends, we haven’t met often. The language barrier also gets in the way.

In general, I want to boost my rating higher, break new records, and try to win as many tournaments as possible. There is always room to improve!”

Russian IM Roman Shogdzhiev (2416) became the youngest IM in history in May 2025 at the age of 10. Argentinian IM Faustino Oro (2516) holds all records as the youngest player to reach 2500 in Classical, Rapid, and Blitz.