Your chess improvement is our mission.

That’s why we’re happiest when a member of our community makes it to the big leagues.

Banh Gia Huy is a Chessable power user, author, FIDE master… and just recently, he added “national champion” to his resume after winning the 2024 Vietnam Chess Championship.

The championship attracted 56 of the country’s best players, including 3 grandmasters and 4 international masters.

Huy started the tournament with a draw against a 1951-rated-player. A less-than-ideal start, especially for a favorite by over 400 points.

But Huy remained unfazed. 

After a successful endgame grind in round 2… a nail-biter clinched in round 3… and consistent, strong performances for the rest of the event… 

Huy scored 7.5/9 and beat GMs Nguyen Duc Hoa and Tran Tuan Minh in the tiebreaks to lift the trophy.

His Journey With Chessable

Huy was only 12 years old when he entered Chessable’s Create Your Own Course Contest. 

And while his sub-1700 rating was above average for his age, it went unnoticed as prodigies broke records for the “youngest GMs and IMs” almost every week.

But the humble beginnings didn’t stop Huy from creating  Huy's Original Repertoire: Spielmann-Indian — one of the highest-rated courses on our platform (4.84 out of 5 stars). 

The repertoire arms Black with an energetic counter to White’s 1.d4 and 2.Nf3 move order.

It attacks the queenside from the get-go, then creates double-edged positions, where you’re in command of the tactics.

“As a 12-year-old, I barely know how to produce files properly… I am surprised how insane I was waking up early to do some extra analysis before going to school… Just to have the best possible course to submit before the CYOC deadline.” Huy recalled.

“The finalists were announced on the live broadcast of a Champions Chess Tour event… The first thing I did every day was to check which course was nominated. How happy I was to see that Huy’s Original Repertoire: Spielmann-Indian got selected and introduced by none other than the GingerGM Simon Williams!”

Just as strong as Huy’s commitment to course quality is his consistency in training.

He built up a 796-day training streak on Chessable…

Drilling cutting-edge opening repertoires by Sam Shankland and Anish Giri…

Beta-testing tactics courses like Mighty is Geometry…

And incrementally building up his game with every session.

The payoff came in spades!

From 2021, Huy grew from strength to strength… gained 200 Elo points every year… and stabilized his rating at the 2400-mark.

The way Huy reached his current peak rating also impresses — using a universal style, combining iron-clad control a la Tigran Petrosian…

With attacking creativity that would make Mikhail Tal proud.

Simply put, if it’s entertaining chess you’re after, you better start following Huy!

What’s Next For Huy

By winning the national championship, he secures his spot in Vietnam’s Olympiad-bound team.

The first Olympiad he followed was in 2022 — in Chennai, where the epic games were equalled only by the decked-out city. Since then, Huy’s dream has been to play in the prestigious event…Which he will fulfill in September, when he squares up against the world’s best players in Budapest, Hungary.

The road to the Olympiad will not be easy, nor will the games during the 2-week global team tournament. 

But if there’s anything we’ve learned about our hero, he’s resilient.

Congratulations, Huy, on winning the Vietnam national championship. And we wish you the best on the 45th Chess Olympiad.