Caleb Levi Levitan, born June 15, 2010, is a 14-year-old South African chess prodigy and FIDE Master, recognized as one of the country’s top chess players.
Caleb Levitan last week achieved a rating that will make him the newest International Master and the youngest in South Africa to attain this title. He will officially receive his title after the FIDE Congress in June.
His notable accomplishments include:
- 2018: Won the Under 8 South African Junior Closed Chess Championships and the Under 8 African Youth Chess Championships in Kisumu, Kenya, earning a provisional Candidate Master title.
- 2019: Won the Under 10 South African Junior Closed Chess Championships.
- 2022: Became the first South African to earn the Candidate Master title by achieving a FIDE rating of 2000 at age 12. He also won the Under 16 South African Junior Closed Chess Championships at 11 and placed second in the Under 16 African Youth Chess Championships in Lusaka, Zambia, earning a provisional FIDE Master title.
- 2023: Awarded the FIDE Master title after his rating surpassed 2100, becoming South Africa’s youngest to achieve this by rating. He received the Amayanga-Yanga Athlete of the Year award from Gauteng Sports.
- 2024: Represented South Africa at the 13th African Games in Accra, Ghana, and became the youngest player invited to the South African Closed Chess Championships at 13, finishing second. At 14, he was the youngest South African to compete at the 45th Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary, playing Board 3, winning five games, drawing one, and helping South Africa secure a top 3 continental spot and qualification for 2025.
Levitan, alongside his twin brother Judah (also a Candidate Master), has competed internationally, including at the 2022 FIDE World Youth U-16 Chess Olympiad in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan.
