Ethan Vaz was about six and hooked to cartoons with his elder sibling when he was introduced to chess primarily as a fun indoor activity and to wean them off television. He took a liking to the game and displayed talent which probably made his parents link up with a coach.

“After just eight months of coaching, Ethan represented Goa at the National under-7 championship in 2018 and finished among the prize winners in his very first National tournament. That performance gave us confidence that he possessed something special,” Edwin said about his 14-year-old son, who became India’s 96th Grandmaster a few days ago with a tournament win in Sarajevo.

Edwin and his wife Linda, software professionals, moved back to Goa in 2011 from Japan where they were working after the tsunami struck and have since turned their attention to furthering their younger son’s chess ambitions.

“As Ethan has grown older and gained a deeper understanding of professional chess, his aspirations have evolved. Today, besides dreaming of becoming a World champion, he envisages becoming the World No. 1,” Edwin told The Hindu.

“The gap between a GM and an elite player is enormous, and we fully understand that there is still a very long road ahead,” he added.

Travelling abroad for events was tough for the boy due to financial constraints and the family turned to crowdfunding to raise money and Edwin is grateful to those who chipped in.

Ethan’s immediate objective is to continue improving by competing regularly in strong tournaments against elite opposition.