Carlos Daniel Albornoz Cabrera

Young chess player from Camagüey, considered the youngest promise in Cuban chess; at just 17 years old, he became the new champion of Cuba.

At four years of age, Carlos Daniel was already watching chess classes broadcast on Cuban television in its Universidad para Todos program, showing interest in them.

His mother took advantage of this opportunity and taught him how to move the pieces. Later, upon entering preschool, the chess teacher, due to his young age, hesitated to train him; but shortly after discovering his talent, he began to guide him.

Soon after, in the company of Dexter Docampo and Jorge Elías, both a year and a few months older than him and provincial champions among seniors from a very young age, he formed a trio of brilliant contemporary players, affectionately nicknamed by journalists and chess followers in the province as Los Tres Mosqueteros.

They, along with Luis Ernesto Quesada from Avila and Arnaldo Fernández and Roisbel Marrero from Holguín, make up the generation that would bring great hopes to chess followers in Cuba.

Carlos Daniel began to show signs of leadership starting in 2013 when he became national school champion by triumphing over his peers despite being more than a year younger than all the others. The important experience of so many battles against these titans gave Carlos Daniel a great advantage in the 2014 national school tournament, in which he asserted his favorite status and retained the title. Nevertheless, he lost 18.4 ELO points due to the large rating difference with the rest of the participants.

However, this situation would reverse at the end of 2014 itself, rising from 2211 to 2394, thus definitively entering the country's Top 100.

It was then that Cuba's eyes began to look at this child, and he did not disappoint them. He made an impression during the 2016 Capablanca in Memoriam International tournament, in which he led the open group until the ninth round. His rivals took advantage of his absence in the tenth round because he had to leave that day for Colombia to participate at only 15 years old in the Youth Pan American Championship, which internationally goes up to 20 years old. Despite the age difference with his rivals, Albornoz returned with a very good fourth place.

At just seventeen years of age, he achieved the title of Grandmaster (GM), which is awarded by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) to practitioners of that sport who reach a certain level of excellence. This is the most important title for chess players after the title of World Champion. It is a lifetime title that in abbreviation appears as Grandmaster (GM) or International Grandmaster (IGM).

Carlos Daniel Albornoz Cabrera achieved this title by recently winning the Central American and Caribbean Chess Championship for under 20 years held in Guatemala. In that event, he completed his third and definitive Grandmaster norm, thus becoming the third Cuban to achieve the Grandmaster title at such a young age. Only the outstanding Lázaro Bruzón and Leinier Domínguez did it at a younger age than him, although both were also seventeen years old when they received it, but with only a few months difference.

On February 14, 2019, he won the title at the National Chess Championship held in Santa Clara, successfully defeating Luis Ernesto Quesada from Avila, accumulating 7.5 points. Havana's Roberto García Pantoja tied in the final round with local player Ermes Espinosa and also completed 7.5 points, but having lost in the fifth round to Albornoz cost him the championship.

On February 12, 2020, he achieved his second consecutive crown at the National Chess Championship held at Palacio Guillermo García in the city of Santa Clara, defeating local player Yasser Quesada, taking advantage of playing White, achieving victory in 33 moves of a Catalan opening. The success earned him 7.5 points in 11 rounds.

On September 30, 2020, he became individual champion of the Online University Pan American Chess Championship, where he advanced as fourth in the qualifying stage, eliminated Colombian Daniel Eduardo López (3-1) in the quarterfinals, Mexican Isaac Valentino Tello (3-2) in the semifinals, and won the title with a crushing 3-0 against Peruvian Cristian David Vásquez. Two days later he won the bronze medal by team in this championship, where Mexico and Peru took the first positions on the podium. He contributed five draws and completed eleven points.

He participated in the Ibero-American Chess Championship, held from February 12-19, 2022 in Mexico City, where he finished with a victory over Cuban Zenia Corrales —who now plays for Mexico— and completed seven points out of nine possible to climb to seventh place in a tournament that brought together 167 contestants.

On March 15, 2022, he obtained second place in the National Men's Chess Championship, disputed in the city of Santa Clara, surpassed by Villa Clara's Yasser Quesada. He completed six points after defeating Las Tunas' Michel Díaz in the last game to finish.

On March 25, 2022, he won the 2.3 Zonal Chess Tournament, held in the Dominican Republic, obtaining 7.5 points out of nine possible, finishing with a draw against his compatriot, Roisbel from Holguín Isán Ortiz, securing one of the two available spots for the 2023 world cup.

He participated in the Benasque Chess Tournament that took place in Spain in July 2022 where he placed tenth with 8 points out of 10 possible.

In August 2022, Albornoz reached an ELO of 2600 after an excellent performance in the Mirandela Open tournament in Portugal, winning the event with seven victories and two draws, one point ahead of three other chess players.

In 2022, Carlos Daniel was part of the Cuban team that participated in the Chennai Chess Olympiad.

Recognitions

Elected by votes collected by INDER and the Sports Journalists Circle of UPEC, among the ten most outstanding young athletes of 2019 in Cuba, with 149 out of 220 votes counted.

Selected among the ten most outstanding athletes of 2019 in the province of Camagüey.

Elected among the ten most outstanding athletes of 2021 in Camagüey.