Remember to PM me via chess.com or Whatsapp +84 364694832 for coaching info (currently accepting new students) and not miss anything from my long About Me section!

Hello chess lovers! I am NM Lai Duc Minh from Vietnam (FIDE profile: My FIDE profile: https://ratings.fide.com/profile/12420387, FIDE ID: 12420387, rated 2126 FIDE, and should not be mistaken with another guy with the same name). I am a 19-year-old sophomore studying Computer Science at VinUniversity and (more importantly!) a self-trained chess player who got from 1300 to almost 2100 in less than 4 years (due to the COVID-19 pandemic that forces me to quit playing then, the real playing period is probably around 2 years only). I would love to share my experience to chess enthusiasts especially the ones that don't have much time on chess like me!

Here are one or some of my most memorable games:

Beating Canada’s legendary GM Bator Sambuev at the Montreal Open 2025 (This game was crucial in my road to joint first place):

Live broadcast: https://lichess.org/broadcast/montreal-open-2025/round-4/cQ7O1nd9/gXx4DY48

- Versus CM Dau Khuong Duy on August 22nd, 2024 who is a famous Vietnamese prodigy, rated 2429 at that time, World U13 Youth Standard Chess Champion in 2023 and will soon become an IM after this ASEAN Age-Group tournament in 2024.

(The game was on live board and can be seen online via https://view.livechesscloud.com/#d35cdcbe-4a76-4150-ad8d-44e9f2afc95e (Round 1, Board 1))

This game was from the first round of the Standard category in the 22nd ASEAN+ Age-Group U20 Chess Championships 2024. I was outplaying him throughout and was winning, but nerve got the better of me and made me throw away a famous victory (still manage not to lose at the end lol).

Some of my career highlights are:

Joint winner (Sharing CA$4900 with 4 other players) of the Montreal Open 2025.

Results at: https://s2.chess-results.com/tnr1246609.aspx?lan=1&art=1&rd=7&flag=30&SNode=S0

- Winner (Individual Gold medal) of the U18 Eastern Asia Youth Rapid Chess Championship 2022.

- Gold medal (Team) in the U18 Eastern Asia Youth Standard Chess Championship 2022.

- Bronze medal (Individual, shared with two other) at the 22nd ASEAN+ Age-group Chess Championships 2024 U20 Standard Section.
I will offer personalized coaching services tailored to different skill levels, from beginners to advanced players (prefer intermediate to advanced players), focusing on strategy, opening theory, and endgame techniques. My specialties include helping students develop critical, creative thinking, improve decision-making skills, and avoid restricted thinking in chess. I also provide guidance on tournament preparation and performance enhancement. Also, I am an opening specialist who did very well in studying openings with minimal time consumed and still get easy, flexible positions and sometimes ev

en out-prepare strong opponents.

I am a long-time chess enthusiast who got from 1300 to almost 2100 without any serious coaches. Therefore, I can share secrets about chess-training techniques and plans that can help players break rating barriers. I am also a hard-working chess player who is not hesitant to set opening theories and middlegame lessons on online platform (chess.com or lichess studies) to help students learn lessons with ease. I have also attended the Fide Trainers’ Commission’s Seminar and got the Fide Instructor title in 2024 (still licensed now).

In recent years, I had good breakthrough including winning the Eastern Asia Youth Rapid Chess Championship U18 in 2022 and Bronze Medal (Individual) in the ASEAN Age Group Standard Chess Championship U20 in 2024, drawing two prodigies Dau Khuong Duy and Prin Laohawirapap (twice) in Standard Chess in the process. I am happy to develop self-training strategies for my students, especially aimed at students who are stuck or have little time to study, with relatively reasonable price for an NM (intended to be 20-25 USD/hour, yet negotiable).

My students have achieved significant success in national tournaments, including a trophy awarded to the U10 Blitz Champion of Vietnam in 2024, 3 medals in the National Sports Competition for Students in 2024 (U18), and 1 Gold (team), 1 Silver (Individual) in the 2024 Vietnam Youth Standard Chess Championship U17. I myself also possess many valuable materials like chess ebooks and online courses. Preferred teaching time: (beginning at) 6-6:30 AM or 6-10 PM (UTC+7).

Feel free to drop me some messages regarding the training process via chess.com inbox or via whatsapp: +84 364694832 !

Here are some photos of my students' achievements:

Student Nguyễn Mạnh Hiếu (https://ratings.fide.com/profile/12440515) rated 1914 after 1.5 year of training

- Me and my student (Phan Khải Trí right) after him winning the National Youth U10 Blitz Chess Championship.

- Another student of mine (Nguyễn Mạnh Hiếu, right of the first place's step-up platform) with his Bronze (Individual) and Gold (Team) medals at the National Students' Chess Olympiad 2024 (U17 Rapid).

- Photo of the same student (left of the second place's step-up platform) with his Silver Medal (Individual) at the National Youth U17 Standard Chess 2024.

laiditmang05_ducminh