2019 U.S. Women’s Champ to Conduct Chess Exhibition at U.S. Open in Orlando

ORLANDO, FLORIDA: 17-year-old Jennifer Yu of Ashburn, Virginia, the 2019 U.S. Women’s Chess Champion, will be conducting a simultaneous exhibition* against 21 opponents on Saturday, August 3, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida in the Junior Ballroom Prefunction area. The rising 11^th-grader has participated in three World Youth Chess Championships, taking home a gold medal at the 2014 event in the Girls U12 section, the first American to do so in 27 years. She has also won the National Girls Tournament of Champions three times and competed on the U.S. Women’s Olympiad team in 2018. Simultaneous exhibitions often make for compelling photos and videos, and “rumor” has it that a special Orlando-based costumed character will be making the very first move at 9 a.m. The simul will be just one part of the activities at the 120th U.S. Open, one of the premier national championships conducted by the 501(c)(3) US Chess Federation whose mission is to “Empower people, enrich lives, and enhance communities through chess.” Approximately 500 participants will be playing in various schedules from August 3 through August 11 in an event where a complete beginner can potentially play a grandmaster. Other events will be held in conjunction with the Open, including three of the premier scholastic events on the US Chess calendar: The Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions, The Dewain Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions, and the Ruth Haring National Girls’ Tournament of Champions. Players from these last three events will make up the simul participants. The Rosen Centre Hotel is located at 9840 International Drive, Orlando FL 32819. For full details on all the U.S. Open events and activities, see www.uschess.org/tournaments/2019/usopen/. For additional information or to arrange a press or photography pass, please contact Dan Lucas at Click here to show email address, 931.200.5509. For more information on all our events, please visit www.uschess.org. *If you are a participant in the Denker, Barber or RHNGTOC, there is still space for a few players rated Under 2000 in the simul. Please contact Click here to show email address to sign up.