The Field
Fabiano Caruana
Fabiano Caruana is an American grandmaster and two-time U.S. Champion (2016, 2022). Along with achieving the third highest FIDE rating of all-time (2844), Caruana’s best accomplishments include an incredible 8.5/10 score in the 2014 Sinquefield Cup, as well as his win in the 2018 Candidates Tournament, which qualified him for the 2018 World Championship match against Magnus Carlsen. Caruana also represented the United States in several olympiads, winning a team gold, team silver, and an individual bronze medal on the top board. Recently, Caruana was the winner of the 2022 American Cup as well as the 2023 Superbet Chess Classic.
Wesley So
Wesley So is a Filipino-American grandmaster, three-time U.S. Champion, and two-time Grand Chess Tour champion. In 2008, he became the youngest player in history to cross a FIDE rating of 2600. He then reached 2700 in January 2013, and in January 2017 became the 11th player ever to cross the 2800 FIDE threshold. So’s tournament accomplishments include winning both individual and team gold for the United States in the 2016 Chess Olympiad, as well as winning the 2016 Sinquefield Cup, 2016 London Chess Classic, and the 2017 Tata Steel Masters. So was also the 2019 World Fischer Random Chess Champion, and his peak FIDE rating of 2822 remains the fourth highest rating ever recorded.
Levon Aronian
Levon Aronian is an Armenian-American grandmaster originally from Yerevan. His notable tournament achievements include winning the 2005 & 2017 FIDE World Cup, 2006 & 2007 Chess960 Championship, 2008 World Rapid Championship, and the 2009 World Blitz Championship. Aronian also led Armenia to a number of national team successes, including three gold medal finishes in the 2006, 2008, and 2012 Chess Olympiads, winning an individual gold and silver medal for his performance on board one. In 2021, Aronian officially switched federations to the United States.
Leinier Dominquez
Leinier Dominguez is a Cuban-American grandmaster and five-time Cuban champion and former World Blitz Champion. Having switched federations to the United States in 2018, he’s had a string of notable results, including a third place finish in the 2022 American Cup, as well as second place finishes in the 2019 and 2022 U.S. Championships. Dominguez was also the winner of the 2021 Champions Showdown.
Sam Shankland
Sam Shankland is a former U.S. Champion (2018) and World Junior Champion (2010). Originally from Berkeley, California, Shankland is also a multiple-time U.S. Olympic team member, winning an individual gold medal in 2014 and a historic team gold in 2016. In 2021, Shankland reached the quarterfinals of the FIDE World Cup, qualifying him for the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix. Shankland is also an accomplished author, having written three books thus far, Small Steps to Giant Improvement, Small Steps 2 Success, and the recent Grandmaster Training Camp 1 - Calculation!, published in February 2023.
Sam Sevian
Sam Sevian is a former U.S. prodigy and previous U12 World Champion. He became a grandmaster at the age of 13 years and 10 months, breaking the record for the youngest American player to earn the GM title. Sevian also broke records on his way to becoming the youngest Expert, National Master, and International Master in U.S. Chess history. In 2017, Sevian won the American Continental Chess Championship, the youngest ever to do so at the age of 16. Sevian crossed 2700 FIDE for the first time in April 2022, after a strong performance in the 2022 American Cup.
Hans Niemann
Hans Niemann is an American grandmaster and former U.S. Junior Champion originally from San Francisco, California. He earned his GM title at the age of 17, after crossing the 2500 FIDE threshold in December 2020. Niemann would surpass 2700 two years later, after finishing second in the 2022 Sunway Sitges Open. Hans’ biggest tournament achievements include winning the 2021 World Open, the 2021 U.S. Junior Championship, and the 2022 Capablanca Memorial.
Ray Robson
Ray Robson is an American grandmaster and one of the most recent members of the “2700” club, having crossed the barrier for the first time in November 2022. Robson’s career highlights include finishing second in the 2014 Millionaire Chess Open, finishing second in the 2015 U.S. Championship, and winning the 2023 Prague Masters. Born in Guam, Robson lived in Florida for most of his childhood before enrolling in Webster University in 2012. Robson has played for the U.S. National Team multiple times, earning a team gold and silver in the 2016 and 2018 Chess Olympiad.
Dariusz Swiercz
Dariusz Swiercz is a Polish-American grandmaster and former World Junior Champion. He was just 14 years and seven months old when he achieved his GM title, making him the youngest Polish player ever to do so. Swiercz has won numerous prestigious events, including the 2011 World Junior Championship, 2016 Millionaire Open, and the 2017 Spice Cup Open. Dariusz is a long-time member of the Saint Louis University chess team, leading them to victory on board one in the 2022 Collegiate Chess Final Four.
Jeffery Xiong
Jeffery Xiong is an American grandmaster and former World Junior Champion (2016). He earned the Grandmaster title at the age of 14, and crossed the 2700 FIDE mark in 2018 when he was just 18 years old. Xiong has won numerous strong events, including the 2016 Capablanca Memorial B Group, the 2016 U.S. Junior Championship, as well as the 2018 and 2019 Saint Louis Spring Classic. In 2019, Xiong had an excellent run in the FIDE World Cup, defeating Lysyj, Maghsoodloo, Giri, and Duda to reach the quarterfinals.
Abhimanyu Mishra
Abhimanyu Mishra is an American grandmaster and 2023 U.S. Junior Champion. He is the current youngest player ever to earn the grandmaster title, which he did at the age of 12 years and 4 months in June 2021. Mishra also earned the International Master title faster than anyone in history (9 years, 2 months) and has broken a number of U.S. chess records, including the records for youngest Expert (2000 USCF) and youngest National Master (2200 USCF). His other tournament achievements include winning Group B of the 2022 St. Louis Spring Chess Classic, as well as finishing second in the 2023 TePe Sigeman & Co Chess Tournament.
Andrew Tang
Andrew Tang is an American grandmaster originally from Naperville, Illinois. He achieved the GM title in November 2017, when he earned his final norm and the required 2500 FIDE rating at the 2017 CCCSA GM Norm Invitational. Tang qualified for the 2023 U.S. Championship by winning the 2023 U.S. Open with a score of 8/9. In addition to being a Twitch streamer (penguinGM1), Tang is well-known for his online skills, as he holds some of the highest blitz and bullet ratings in the world.