How Being Rich Almost Killed My Chess Career

One day I came across something Cristiano Ronaldo said:

"When I was young, I had nothing. I had to work hard to get everything. But I’m afraid my son won’t have the same motivation because he has everything from the second he’s born."

It hit me because, while my dad wasn’t as rich as Ronaldo, I never really lacked anything growing up. I got what I wanted, and that sounds great, right? But what I didn’t realize back then was that having no problems gave me no motivation.

I didn’t have a drive, and without it, I drifted through life, enjoying myself but with no goals.

I am GM Gabuzyan, and in this article, I will share the story of how I went from being a very average kid to becoming the youngest Grandmaster in my country.

Chess is competitive... And I wasn’t keeping up

Chess is tough. You see kids with 2,500+ ratings when they’re barely teenagers now. But back when I was almost 14, I was only rated 2,100.

Not bad, but not where I needed to be. I wasn’t pushing myself at all. Instead of training, I spent my days hanging out with friends, playing video games, and living an easy life.

The truth is, I loved chess more than anything, but I just couldn’t light that fire in myself. And then something happened that shook my life to its core.

The realization that changed everything

In Armenia, where I’m from, all 18-year-old boys have to serve in the army for two years. Now, don’t get me wrong—I respect the army, but for chess, this could have killed my career. Two years away from the board? Forget it.
But if you achieve something big, like earning a GM title or winning a medal in a world or European championship, you can serve in a special place for athletes. That meant I could keep training and even compete during service.

Around 14 I looked something like this, at some minor school event

So, I realized that I had four years to make something happen, or my dream would be over.

Imagine you are playing a classical chess game but suddenly you look at your clock and realize you have only a few minutes left...

4 years sounds like a lot, but compared to the goals I needed to achieve, it was very little time.

Beginning of transformation

In order to achieve what I wanted, I needed to put in some extraordinary effort.

It wasn’t easy. I was fighting my laziness, trying to sit down and train chess instead of living my easy, carefree life.
However, the old habits were strong, and they tried to take control over me.

But in the moments when darkness was controlling me, there was a light at the end of the tunnel.

I had a reason to be stronger than my weaknesses — I was fighting for my dream!

Either I would become a chess player or I wouldn’t.
At some point, my commitment outweighed my weaknesses.

I started training seriously, even though I didn’t really know what I was doing at first. I got lucky, though—I had a great coach who told me interesting ideas for improvement. That’s when things started to turn around.

The hardest part was pushing through the discomfort. Training for hours every day wasn't easy, but it was necessary.
Every aspect of the game needed attention, and my training routine was designed to address all areas step by step.
This level of hard work and discipline eventually paid off.

After some period of hard training and playing tournaments, my rating jumped to nearly 2,300 by the time I turned 15.

But this was not enough for my goal, and one day life gave me a decent opportunity.

The turning point: U16 Olympiad

At 16, I made the Armenian U16 national team, and we went to the World Olympiad. This was a big deal—medaling here could solve my army problem. But then, disaster struck.

I got really sick right before the first round. I was devastated.

But maybe due to my past efforts, or for reasons I can't even explain, fortune was on my side.

One of my teammate's dads was a doctor, and he traveled with us. He helped me recover in a day. (Thank you )
I was back in the game.

Long story short, we crushed it. We won the gold medal, and it was one of the happiest moments of my life. Coming back to Armenia as a U16 Olympiad champion was unreal. It felt like my dream was becoming reality.

My proud grandpa watching my interview after we landed

The army problem? Solved.

But that was just the start

That win wasn’t enough — I wanted more. I got addicted to the feeling of victory. Over the next few years, I won three silver medals in European championships and a silver in the World U18 Championship.

13th World Champion Garry Kasparov awarded me a World U18 silver medal

And finally, I became a Grandmaster at 17, the youngest GM in Armenia at the time.

Second of gratitude

Life has taught me to be grateful, and while these names may not mean much to you, I want to express my gratitude to the people who helped me on my chess journey.

My first teacher, Ashken Sanoyan, who introduced me to chess.

Vladimir Hayrapetyan, who opened my eyes to how deep and beautiful the game really is.

GM Tigran Nalbandyan, who guided me through the complicated path to becoming a GM.

GM Avetik Grigoryan, who showed me what it means to be a professional.

GM Avetik, and me - guess who is who

And of course, my Dad — my biggest fan and supporter, who believed in me every step of the way.

Me and Dad - in Abu Dhabi, traveled for a chess tournament

Thank you.

The takeaway: What drove me

All those trophies, the GM title, the victories — they were the result of the fire that was lit when I realized I had no choice. It was either make it or lose my chess career to military service. That fear forced me to take action, and it made me the player I am today.

And that’s my message to you: find that fire. Whether it’s chess or anything else, you need something that drives you, or you’ll never give your best.
Let me know in the comments if you'd like me to share the great training habits my coach taught me — without them, I wouldn’t have stood a chance.

My new challenge

Now, at 29, I’m facing a new, even tougher challenge. I’m overweight — more than 120kg (about 265 pounds). My doctor warned me that, if I don’t lose the weight, I could face serious health issues or even risk dying in the next few years.
I’ve had this problem for most of my life, but I never took it seriously. Now, the fire is lit again, and I’m ready to face this new challenge head-on.

Should I share that story in my next article? Let me know in the comments, and feel free to share your thoughts on this one too.

Thanks for reading! GM Gabuzyan was here with you.

P.S.
The article was originally published on https://chessmood.com/blog, where you’ll find over 100 other articles written by Grandmasters, who share tips from their professional journeys and how to adopt the right mindset for this beautiful game, in order to have fun and grow at the same time.

P.P.S. If you’re not a ChessMood student yet, I have three gifts for you:

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