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). In 2022, Mishra won Group B of the St. Louis Spring Chess Classic with 7/9 points.

Leon Luke Mendonca is an Indian grandmaster and the current #11 ranked junior originally from Goa, India. He became an International Master at the age of 12 years, 11 months, and earned his GM title when he was 14, making him India’s 67th official grandmaster. Currently at his peak FIDE rating of 2631, Mendonca first crossed 2600 in May of 2023, after scoring 7.5/9 for shared first in the 2023 Bad Wörishofen Open, and a stellar 9/9 for clear first in the 2023 Hit Open. Recently, Mendonca won the strong 2024 Tata Steel Challengers’ with 9.5/13, qualifying him for the Masters’ next year.

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, and helped the team win the 2022 Collegiate Chess Final Four.

Benjamin Bok is a Dutch chess grandmaster who earned the GM title in 2014. He has represented the Netherlands in multiple team competitions and Olympiads, starting with the 2016 Olympiad in Baku. In 2015, Bok won clear first in the London Chess Classic FIDE Open with a score of 8/9. He is a long-time member of the Saint Louis University chess team, and was part of the winning team in the 2022 Collegiate Chess Final Four. Benjamin streams regularly on Twitch under the username GMBenjaminBok.

Samvel Ter-Sahakyan a two-time Armenian champion originally from Vanadzor, Armenia. He is a former European U10 and U18 Youth Chess champion, and won the overall 2011 World U18 Championship in Caldas Novas, Brazil. Ter-Sahakyan has represented the Armenian Olympic team several times in international events, including their silver medal finish in the 2022 Chennai Olympiad. Samvel’s peak FIDE rating is 2649, which he achieved in January 2024.

Aryan Chopra is an Indian grandmaster originally from New Delhi, India. He became a GM in 2016 at the age of 14 years, 9 months, making him the second youngest Indian grandmaster in history at the time. Chopra previously played in Saint Louis as part of the 2017 Match of the Millenials, where he represented the World Team which went on to win 30.5-17.5. Chopra first broke 2600 in May of 2022, after an excellent 5.5/7 for shared 2nd in the Menorca Open and 7.0/9 for shared first in the Fagernes International.

Mikhail Antipov is a Russian grandmaster and former World Junior Champion (2015) originally from Moscow, Russia. He earned the GM title in 2013 at the age of 16, making him the youngest Russian grandmaster at the time. Antipov’s other accomplishments include winning the 2019 Netanya International Chess Festival, the 2020 Moscow City Championship, and the 2023 U.S. Masters. Antipov currently attends and plays for the University of Missouri, which recently won the 2024 Pan-American Intercollegiate Championship for the first time.

Christopher Yoo is an American grandmaster and current #18 ranked junior in the world. In 2019 he became the youngest International Master in U.S. history and would earn the GM title in early 2022. Yoo’s tournament achievements include winning the 2022 U.S. Junior Championship, as well as the strong 2022 U.S. Masters. In 2019, Christopher earned the Bronze medal in the FIDE World Cup in Composing, making him the youngest person to ever medal in the competition at the age of 12 years old. Christopher was also awarded the 2023 Young Chess Player of the Year by US Chess.

Nikolas Theodorou is a Greek grandmaster originally from Athens. He earned the International Master title in 2016 and the Grandmaster title in 2021. In 2022 Theodorou represented Greece at the 44th Chess Olympiad, winning an individual silver medal on Board 2. Theodorou is currently a member of the Saint Louis University chess team and helped them win the 2022 Collegiate Chess Final Four.

Aram Hakobyan is an Armenian grandmaster and former u12 World Youth Champion. He is a four-time winner of the Armenian Youth Championship (U10, U12, U14, and U18) and was the vice-champion of the 2014 European Youth Chess Championship u14. Aram is a member of the Webster University chess team, having helped them win the 2023 Collegiate Chess Final Four.

Robby Kevlishvili is a Dutch grandmaster and former World Youth champion originally from Dronten, Netherlands. He earned his GM title in 2021, and has had a peak FIDE rating of 2541, which he earned in May 2023. Robby’s other achievements include winning the 2018 Vandoeuvre Open and the 2018 Noteboom Memorial. He currently attends Saint Louis University and plays for the SLU chess team, which won the 2022 Pan-American and Final Four Championship.

Akshat Chandra is an American grandmaster and former prodigy. His scholastic achievements include winning the 2013 K-9 Super-National Championship as well as the 2013 North American Youth Championship. In April 2015, Akshat won the National K-12 Championship and later that year he won the U.S. Junior Championship. His other victories include winning the 2018 UTD FIDE Open, as well as the 2019 SPICE Cup Open. Akshat is currently a member of the Saint Louis University chess team, and was part of the winning team in the 2022 Collegiate Chess Final Four.

Dambasuren Batsuren is a Mongolian grandmaster and current Mongolian No. 1. He earned the GM title in 2020 and in 2022 won his first Mongolian Chess Championship with 8.5/11. In 2021, he qualified for the FIDE World Cup and has represented Mongolia in multiple team events, most recently in the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India.

Luka Budisavljevic is a Serbian grandmaster and current #61 on the FIDE Top 100 Juniors list. He earned his title in 2021 at the age of of 16 years and 10 months, becoming the youngest Serbian player ever to do so. Luka has represented the Serbian national team in numerous team and youth events, earning both the team and individual silver medal in the U18 European Youth Rapid Championship.

Lucas van Foreest is a former Dutch champion originally from Hengelo, Netherlands. He achieved the GM title after tying for first place with 7.0/9 in the 2018 Open Dutch Championship. Van Foreest also won the 2017 Bruges Masters as well as the top amateur group at the 2017 Tata Steel Chess Tournament. Notably Lucas is the sibling of fellow Dutch champion GM Jorden van Foreest and 2022 Dutch Women’s Champion WIM Machteld van Foreest.

Andy Woodward is an American GM-elect and second youngest U.S. grandmaster in history, recently earning the title at the age of 13 years, 8 months. Woodward earned his final GM norm by scoring 6.0/9 in the 2024 Jeddah Masters. Andy was also the winner of the strong 2023 Spice Cup Open. Currently he is the #39 ranked junior in the world, and #6 among U.S. juniors.

Cemil Can Ali Mirandi is a Turkish grandmaster originally from Ankara, Turkey. He is a five-time European Youth champion, winning once in the U10, U12, U14, U16, and U18 categories. Ali Mirandi has also won numerous open events, including the 2019 Thanksgiving Open, 2021 Charlotte Open, and 2022 Teplice Open. He has represented Turkey in multiple international team events, including two chess olympiads.

Gergely Kantor is a Hungarian grandmaster originally from Budapest, Hungary. He earned the GM title in 2019. Kantor has represented Hungary’s national team in numerous team events, including most recently as Board 4 at the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai, India. He has also previously tied for 2nd place in the U16 World Youth Championship, and won the 2019 Hungarian Junior Chess Championship U20.

Harshit Raja is an Indian grandmaster originally from Pune, India. He achieved his GM title in 2022 after a strong finish in the 2021 Biel Open, making him India’s 69th grandmaster. Raja is currently a student and team member of the University of Missouri, which recently won the 2024 Pan-American Intercollegiate Championship.

Josiah Stearman is an American International Master originally from Martinez, California. He is a multiple-time state champion and currently has three GM norms. In 2023, Stearman finished 4th in the American Continental Championship, qualifying him for the 2023 FIDE World Cup. Stearman is a former student of the University of Missouri, which recently won the 2024 Pan-American Intercollegiate Championship.