A YOUNG chess grandmaster fell to his death in an apparent parkour accident, after he attempted to jump between balconies in Moscow.

    According to Russian news reports, 20-year-old Yuri Eliseev died late Saturday night after falling from the 12th floor of his apartment building in Moscow.

    Eliseev was the world under-16 chess champion in 2012 and was given grandmaster status at age 17.

    The reports said Eliseev died while trying to reach the balcony of a neighboring apartment.

    He was described as a practitioner of parkour, or free-running, which involves climbing, jumping to difficult perches and acrobatic moves.

    Close friend and fellow chess player Daniil Dubov wrote on his Facebook page: “That night a close friend was tragically killed, a brilliant chess player and an analyst, one of the most talented people I know.”

    Others added their tributes to Eliseev after reading about the tragic news.

    Azat Shaykhutdinov wrote: “My condolences, it is unbelievable. A couple of years ago, I played with him ... A few days ago, listened to his comments to the game ... Horror.”

    Parkour, first developed in France by Raymond Belle and his son, David Belle, uses urban and natural settings and obstacles, such as balconies and high buildings.

    It primarily uses movements from military obstacle course training and came to prominence in the 1980s, before being popularized in such action films as “Casino Royale” and “The Bourne.” However, it has also been implicated in the deaths of youngsters trying to participate in the high-risk activity.

    Earlier this year, a 13-year-old plunged 30 meters to his death from a tower block in Russia after he attempted a daredevil parkour stunt.(SD-Agencies)