Ivan Ilyich Bukavshin was a Russian chess Grandmaster and three-time Russian youth champion. He was born on May 3, 1995, in Rostov-on-Don, Russia and died on January 12, 2016, in Tolyatti, Russia. Although the cause of death was initially declared to be a stroke, later investigations suggested he might have died of a drug overdose.
Bukavshin started his chess career at six under the guidance of IM Alexander Panchenko. He gained prominence due to his consistent achievements in youth categories including winning three times in the U10, U12, and U18 championships. Bukavshin won the title of International Master in 2011 and the Grandmaster title in 2012.
Throughout his career, he had many remarkable games and tournament victories such as winning the bronze medal at the 2012 European U18 Championship, gold medal in 2013 and 2015 at the team event of the 19th European Youth Team Chess Championship. Bukavshin also tied for first place in the 2015 Russian Championship Higher League, and he was declared the winner on tiebreaks but his early death in 2016 halted a promising chess career.