— THE FOUNDER —

Every master was once a beginner who refused to give up. My journey into competitive chess began during my high school years in Egypt—a time filled with immense intellectual curiosity, but also defined by formidable structural barriers.

Unlike aspiring players in major European chess capitals with access to grandmaster academies, elite computer engines, and structured school leagues, I faced a stark reality: prohibitive club tuition, long travel distances, and a severe shortage of structured Arabic educational literature.

1. The Solitary Grind of Self-Directed Study

Without access to private grandmaster coaching, I had no choice but to engineer my own training curriculum. I spent countess nights analyzing classic games by Alexander Alekhine, Garry Kasparov, and Bobby Fischer by candlelight and low-bandwidth internet connections.

I transcribed tactical positions onto handwritten notebooks, calculating variation trees until pattern recognition became second nature. It was grueling work, but it forged something far more valuable than raw chess rating: it cultivated mental resilience, self-reliance, and deep empathy for every student trying to learn in isolation.

2. The Vow Made in Solitude

During those intensive years of self-guided study, I realized how many brilliant minds across Egypt and the MENA region were dropping out of chess simply because they lacked structured guidance in their native language.

"I made a solemn vow: if I ever attained master-level rating and pedagogical expertise, I would ensure no aspiring thinker in the Arab world had to walk that path alone. High-tier chess education must be free and accessible to all." — Daniel Tadros

3. Climbing to FIDE 2100 & Formal Coaching

Through years of disciplined tournament play, tactical calculation drills, and positional study, I achieved a peak FIDE rating of 2100 Master Level. But competitive rating was never the final destination—it was merely the credential required to validate the pedagogical framework I intended to build.

I began formal coaching over three years ago, designing age-adapted syllabi that translate grandmaster strategic concepts into simple, intuitive logic steps for students ranging from primary school children to adult enthusiasts.

4. Founding Mdmn Chess (مدمن شطرنج)

In 2021, I launched Mdmn Chess (مدمن شطرنج) to fulfill my high school vow. What started as a modest YouTube channel quickly grew into a multi-platform educational initiative encompassing video courses, interactive puzzle drills, Substack cognitive essays, and grassroots community workshops.

Through collaboration with local initiatives such as the NASA Kiro Initiative, we facilitate free chess training sessions for underprivileged youth, distributing chess sets and demonstrating how strategic thinking transfers directly to academic success in math and science.

5. The Road Ahead: Educational Equity in MENA

Today, Mdmn Chess has reached over 1,000 active students and accumulated over 100 hours of free video content. But our vision extends further. My career objective is to secure academic grants and research opportunities to integrate evidence-based chess curricula into national school systems across Egypt and the MENA region.

To every young student reading this: never let financial or geographical limits define the ceiling of your potential. Chess doesn't choose the smart—it makes them.