Las Vegas International Chess Festival Kicks off with U.S. Women's Open

The Las Vegas International Chess Festival kicks off on Tuesday, June 11 with the U.S. Women's Open, a five round Swiss that will crown a National Champion. Follow games on followchess.com.

The 2018 US Women's Open Champion is back for the 2019 edition, Photo Tim Hanks

Players in the U.S. Women's Open include defending champion, Tsogtsaikhan Saikhanchimeg of Mongolia, and WGM Carla Heredia of Ecuador. https://twitter.com/HerediaCarla/status/1138484841920360448 This year's Main Event, the National Open, is a nine-round event with GM and IM norms available. Pre-registered players include over 20 Grandmasters, including our champions from 2018 and 2017, GMs Cristian Chirila and Ruifeng Li. GM Lazaro Bruzon Batista of Cuba is the highest rated player registered so far. Other American stars playing include four-time U.S. Champion Alexander Shabalov, GM and popular streamer Andrew Tang and legendary GM James Edward Tarjan. WGM Tatev Abrahamyan and FM Annie Wang, two of the fiercest of competitors in the U.S. Women's Championships are also in the mix. That event starts on Wednesday and spans through Sunday. The Festival hosts numerous side events, including the Walter Browne Memorial Blitz and the International Youth Championship, which will be hosted by Women's Program Director Jennifer Shahade.