The Saint Louis Chess Club, the leading private chess institution in the United States, has announced that no invitations will be extended to Hans Niemann to participate in invitational events organized by the club throughout 2024. The club cites Niemann’s inappropriate behaviour including damaging private property and rude comments as justification for their decision. Niemann has posted a number of posts on X denying the accusations.
For the first time in a long time, the 2024 Pan-American Intercollegiate Championships saw a first-time champion take top honors. After six rounds from January 4 through 7 in McAllen, Texas, University of Missouri-A won with a dazzling 5½/6 score ahead of University of Texas at Dallas (UTD)-A, which finished clear second on 5/6.
American GMs Fabiano Caruana and Leinier Dominguez lead the Sinquefield Cup with 4/6 scores and two rounds to play in the final event of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour.
Fabiano Caruana became the 2023 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz champion after a dramatic final day of blitz, which came down to a winner-take-all last round game against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Caruana ended with 21/36 points, Vachier-Lagrave finished second with 20.5, while Ian Nepomniachtchi and Le Quang Liem tied for third place with 20 points each. | Photo courtesy of Saint Louis Chess Club, Lennart Ootes