2024 U.S. Championships | The Field
Fabiano Caruana is the twice reigning U.S. Champion (three titles total) and the current World No. 3. He is also a former World Championship challenger (2018) and winner of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour. A perennial top-5 player, Caruana has won a number of super-tournaments in the past year, including the 2023 Sinquefield Cup, 2023 & 2024 Superbet Chess Classic, and the 2024 Zagreb Rapid & Blitz. Caruana has represented the U.S. national team as the top board since 2016, leading the team to gold and earning an individual bronze medal in the 2016 Baku Olympiad. With a peak FIDE rating of 2844, Caruana holds the third highest rating of all time.
Wesley So is a three-time U.S. Champion and two-time Grand Chess Tour Champion. Originally from the Philippines, So transferred federations to the United States in 2013, representing the U.S. in multiple Olympiads since and winning both the team and individual gold in the 2016 Baku Olympiad. Currently at World No. 9, So has previously been as high as World No. 2, with a peak FIDE rating of 2822. In 2019, So defeated Magnus Carlsen in the inaugural FIDE Fischer Random World Championship, becoming the first official World Champion of Fischer Random.
Leinier Dominguez is a Cuban-American grandmaster and former World Blitz Champion (2008). He is a five-time Cuban champion and the highest rated Cuban player of all time. After switching federations to the United States in 2018, Dominguez has 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, and placed second in the 2023 Sinquefield Cup. Dominguez has also represented the U.S. in two Olympiads (2022 and 2024).
Levon Aronian is an Armenian-American Grandmaster and a former blitz, rapid and Chess960 World Champion. After earning the grandmaster title at age 17, Aronian joined the world’s elite a few years later, eventually reaching a peak FIDE rating of 2830, the fourth highest ever recorded in history. Aronian’s notable tournament achievements include winning the 2005 & 2017 FIDE World Cup, the 2006 & 2007 Chess960 World Championship, the 2008 World Rapid Championship, and the 2009 World Blitz Championship. Originally from Yerevan, Aronian famously led Armenia to three gold medal victories in the 2006, 2008, and 2012 Chess Olympiads. In 2021, Aronian switched federations to represent the United States. In the past year, Aronian has won the prestigious 2023 WR Masters and 2024 American Cup.
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 four books thus far, Small Steps to Giant Improvement, Small Steps 2 Success, Grandmaster Training Camp 1 - Calculation!, and the recent Theoretical Rook Endgames, published in Spring 2024. Shankland’s peak FIDE rating is 2731, which he achieved in February 2019.
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 represented the U.S. National Team multiple times, earning a team gold and silver in the 2016 and 2018 Chess Olympiad.
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. On his path to GM, Sevian also broke records for 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. In 2023, Sevian won the prestigious Champions Showdown Chess9LX tournament.
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. Recently, Niemann won the 2023 Tournament of Peace and 2024 Grenke Open, scoring 8/9 in both events. This will be Niemann’s second U.S. Championship appearance.
Christopher Yoo is a grandmaster and two-time U.S. Junior Champion. He is currently ranked #2 among U.S. players under 21 and is the highest-rated 17-year-old in the country. As a junior, Yoo broke a number of age-related records, including becoming the youngest National Master (9 years, 11 months) in U.S. Chess history. Yoo’s tournament achievements include winning the 2022 U.S. Junior Championship, as well as the 2022 U.S. Masters. As of September 2024, Christopher was ranked #16 on the FIDE Top 100 Juniors list. This will be Christopher’s second U.S. Championship appearance.
Abhimanyu Mishra is an American grandmaster and 2023 U.S. Junior Champion. He is the 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. Currently the #1 ranked U.S. player under 21, this will be Mishra’s second U.S. Championship appearance.
Grigoriy Oparin is a Russian-American Grandmaster currently in the FIDE top-100 list. He earned his GM title in 2013 at the age of 16, and has a peak FIDE rating of 2687, which he achieved in June 2023. He was the winner of the 2014 Russian Junior Championship and the 2016 Russian Higher League, and was the best player at the 2016 Nutcracker Match of the Generations. Oparin is a member of the University of Missouri chess team, which won the prestigious 2024 President’s Cup. This will be Oparin’s first U.S. Championship appearance.
Awonder Liang is an American grandmaster and three-time U.S. Junior Champion, originally from Madison, Wisconsin. He is also a two-time World Youth champion and the holder of many youth records, including being the third youngest U.S. grandmaster ever. Liang has won many open events, including the 2024 World Open. His previous peak FIDE rating of 2651 ranked him No. 91 in the world. The last time he played, Liang scored 7.5/13 in the 2022 U.S. Championship, finishing in shared third place. This will be his fourth U.S. Championship appearance.
