US Ch. Rd01: 13-year-old steals the thunder

For the sixth consecutive year, the best chess players in the U.S. have gathered in Saint Louis to fight for the title of U.S. Champion and U.S. Women’s Champion. GM Gata Kamsky is defending his title while recently anointed grandmaster Irina Krush is looking for her sixth title at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Championship. The events are being held simultaneously from May 7 through May 20 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (CCSCSL). The games start each day at 1 p.m., with every move broadcast live and discussed by the powerful commentary team of GMs Yasser Seirawan, WGM Jennifer Shahade and Maurice Ashley on the official web site.

Wednesday’s opening ceremonies were held at the World Chess Hall of Fame, which sits directly across the street from the venue for the tournaments, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. The event featured the drawing of lots to determine pairings and colors for both round-robin tournaments. Here are the pairings for Wednesday’s first round, highlighted by an instant clash between top-seeded Kamsky and number two seed Timur Gareev.

On the eve of hosting the most prestigious chess tournaments in the nation, St. Louis received national recognition from the United States Senate, which passed an official resolution late Monday night naming St. Louis the National Chess Capital.

The resolution, which was introduced by Senators Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Roy Blunt (R-MO), also seeks to raise awareness of the educational benefits of chess and to encourage schools and community centers to engage in chess programs that promote important developmental skills like problem-solving, critical thinking, spatial awareness and more.

"The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis hosts all major U.S. chess competitions and has been a driver in educating children throughout the State since its inception," Senator McCaskill said. "The intellect and creativity needed to learn and compete in chess also help students think creatively and strategically in traditional academic areas, including math and science. We are proud St. Louis is leading the way in competitive American chess while providing students the problem-solving and critical thinking skills needed in an ever-advancing world."

“I’m pleased the Senate approved our resolution to designate St. Louis as the National Chess Capital,” Senator Blunt said. “Chess programs like those offered by the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis challenge young people academically and help motivate them to succeed."

The news came just days after the announcement that a Congressional Chess Caucus had been formed to promote the educational benefits of chess.

Men's Championship round one

The 2014 US Championship started today, and for the seventh consecutive year, it is held at the St. Louis Chess Club and Scholastic Center. After being lauded as the Chess Capitol in the US, and amidst federal national government recognition of the benefits for youth, the first round was a posterchild if any.

The men’s competition brings in a number of championship veterans, whether it be Gata Kamsky, both the oldest and strongest player in the event, to teen talents Daniel Naroditsky and Ray Robson, neither of whom are strangers to it. Among the new faces is GM Mackenzie “Mac” Molner, 25, who earned his grandmaster title in 2013, a breakthrough year for him as he also won the very disputed GM-filled US Open.

The opening round saw a an anticlimactic battle between the two top Elos, Gata Kamsky and Timur Gareev, neither of whom wished to expose themselves so early in the competition and a 14-move draw was the result. Other games were more spirited though, as is usual of the traditionally hard-fought title, and two players were able to draw blood for a positive start.

The first was Ray Robson who played a very sharp Petroff in the 4….Nxe4 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3 line in which Black forewent on kingside castling and opted instead for the queenside like White. In the nervous middlegame skirmish, Sergey Erenberg overlooked a strong white continuation, and after a rook penetration on the seventh, soon went the way of the dodo.

GM Josh Friedel was doing fine against Alexander Lenderman, and had a promising position with white, but began to drift in the late middlegame and eventually succumbed.

Men: results round 1

Replay all games

Select games from the dropdown menu above the board

Women's Championship

In the women’s competition, reigning champion GM Irina Krush, flush with her newly acquired title, the first American woman so honored, had little difficulty in outclassing her opponent, Katerina Nemcova, while here closest rival on paper, four-time champion IM Anna Zatonskih was held to a draw by Irina Zenyuk. Tatev Abrahamyan and Sabina Foisor also notched opening wins against Alisa Melekhina and Camilla Baginskaite respectively, but the game of the round, for men and women, was the final game left running: the exciting battle between Viktorija Ni and 13-year-old Ashritha Eswaran.

Ashritha Eswaran is a young US player who has competed for the US in the World Under-12 and Under-14 categories, narrowly missing the medal, and who comes as one of the youngest-ever competitors in the women’s section. She sports the title of National Master, a US title granted when a player passes a 2200 USCF rating, especially noteworthy when you consider that this is the result of adding 300 Elo to her rating since 2013.

Her game with black against her far more experienced, and higher rated opponent, started badly as she was outplayed and lost material in a difficult middlegame. A missed tactic allowed her to claw back to a fighting chance for a draw, but then the battle really took off, with blazing tactical fireworks precisely when there were the fewest pieces left. The three live commentators, WGM Jennifer Shahade, GM Yasser Seirawan and GM Maurice Ashley were literally jumping up and down as the richness of the position unraveled and the young player showed the depth of her talent and combativeness.

Ashritha Eswaran signs her first game and first victory in the US Women's Championship

A deeply disappointed Ni quickly signed the scoresheets and exited the hall, while the teenager in braces with a flower hairpin, gave one of the most modest and mature post-game interviews one could see. Despite a grin that stretched from ear to ear, her replies bespoke a naturalness and good character that did both her and her parents credit.

Women: Results of round 1

Replay all games

Select games from the dropdown menu above the board

Schedule

Links Official tournament site All men's games in PGN All women's games in PGN The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.