Sultan Khan posthumously becomes Pakistan's first chess grandmaster

Legendary Pakistani chess player Sultan Khan has been posthumously awarded the Honorary Grandmaster title. With this, Khan is now the first grandmaster of Pakistan (although, as per FIDE, he had played in the pre-partition era of India). The prestigious title was awarded by FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich. “A Punjabi chess player and a citizen of Pakistan, he is considered the strongest chess master of his time from Asia. In an international chess career of less than five years, he won the British Chess Championship three times. Mir Sultan Khan, who beat some of the world’s top players despite growing up with little access to chess books and knowing next to nothing about the theory of chess, became the first Pakistani grandmaster,” FIDE said in its press release. Born in 1903 in Sargodha, a city currently located in the Punjab province of Pakistan, Khan emerged victorious at the British Chess Championship in 1929, 1931 and 1932. He also defeated some famous chess players like former world champion Jose Raul Capablanca, Frank Marshall and Savielly Tartakower. One of the finest Asian chess players of his generation, Khan went on to hold former world champions Alexander Alekhine and Max Euwe to draws. Khan died in 1966 due to tuberculosis. Sultan Khan may not be the only chess player to receive the title. “We are considering a couple more such successful players,” Dvorkovich told Chess.com. “We appreciate and welcome this belated recognition by FIDE,” Sultan Khan’s granddaughter Atiyab Sultan commented to Chess.com.

Late Mir Sultan Khan given Grandmaster Title 👑

FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich presented Pakistan's officials with the document awarding the title of Honorary Grandmaster to Mir Sultan Khan.
A Punjabi chess player and a citizen of Pakistan, he is considered the strongest… pic.twitter.com/jcvnCQbvcQ

— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) February 5, 2024

The FIDE delegation, headed by Dvorkovich, met the President of Pakistan, Dr Arig Alvi and Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar in Islamabad on Friday. Apart from Dvorkovich, the FIDE delegation comprised Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifa Al-Nehayan (President of the Asian Chess Federation), Dana Reizniece-Ozola (Deputy Chair of FIDE’s Management Board), GM Nigel Short (FIDE’s Development Director), Hisham Al Taher, Secretary-General of the Asian Chess Federation, as well as Jauhar Saleem, Chief Patron of the Chess Federation of Pakistan. Dvorkovich presented Pakistan’s officials with the document acknowledging the title of Honorary Grandmaster being awarded to Sultan Khan.