Pan-Am Youth Qualifiers Announced

Contact: Jerry Nash FIDE Youth Events jnash@uschess.org Cell: 931-787-2756 (CROSSVILLE, TN) The United States Chess Federation is pleased to announce that 12 players have qualified as Official Representatives to represent the United States of America in their age categories at the 2017 Pan American Youth Championships scheduled for June 30 – July 7, 2017, in Costa Rica. These players earned this honor by achieving the highest rating in their age and gender categories according to US Chess’s February Ratings Supplement. These players are considered the Official U.S. Representatives in their age groups.  In addition, ten players who qualified on the basis of their superior performance in the 2016 Pan American Youth Festival have earned the right to be Personal Rights Representatives of the U.S. Seven players also qualified as Personal Rights representatives by winning Gold medals at the 2016 North American Youth Chess Championship. If an Official Representative (listed below) in an age category declines to attend, then the highest rated player (according to the Supplement Rating of the 2017 February Supplement) in that category who is registered with the organizers and with the US Chess Office by April 30^th will be considered the Official U.S. Representative. All Personal Rights players who plan to attend must also register with the organizers and with the US Chess office by the April 30^th deadline. The Pan American Youth is an open tournament for players who live in the Americas.  Any US Chess member who meets the age requirement for an age group may play. Players register for the tournament with the organizers and through US Chess.  A player’s age for this tournament is his/her age as of January 1, 2017.  Only the Official U.S. Representatives and Personal Rights players from the previous Pan American Youth are eligible to receive financial support from US Chess.  Find more info on the US Chess invitation requirements.  As the national federation, US Chess completes the registration with the tournament organizers for all U.S. players. For registration and payment details, please contact Jerry Nash at Click here to show email address.  Players listed below should contact Mr. Nash immediately to confirm player information. All players must register directly with the organizers and also contact Mr. Nash to confirm their participation. More info on the 2017 Pan American Youth Championships can be found here. Congratulations to the following players who have qualified as the Official U.S. Representatives to the 2017 Pan American Youth Championships! U-8 Open – Abhimanyu Mishra – NJ U-8 Girls – Rachael Li – TX U-10 Open – Eric Li – NJ U-10 Girls – Ellen Wang – NY U-12 Open – Justin Wang – TX U-12 Girls – Rochelle Wu – AL U-14 Open – Awonder Liang – WI U-14 Girls – Carissa Yip – MA U-16 Open – Ruifeng Li – TX U-16 Girls – Jennifer Yu – VA U-18 Open – Jeffery Xiong – TX U-18 Girls – Maggie Feng – OH These players achieved medals at the 2016 Pan American Youth and are team members qualifying by Personal Rights: Sophie Velea – WA Anika Rjaram – CA Rianne Ke – CA Nastassja Matus – MN Aasa Dommalapati – VA Ambica Yellamraju – TX Marvin Gao – FL Nico Chasin – NY Arthur Guo – GA Marcus Miyasaka – NY The following players also qualify by Personal Rights by achieving Gold medals at the 2016 North American Youth: Zhaozhi Li – IL Aaron Shlionsky – NJ Rohun Trakru – TX Sasha Konovalenko – MI Claire Cao – PA Atmika Gorti – VA Sophie Velea – WA   ******* The United States Chess Federation (US Chess) is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting chess in the United States. Founded in 1939, US Chess serves as the governing body for chess in the United States and is now headquartered in Crossville, Tennessee. US Chess is devoted to extending the role of chess in American society. It promotes the study and knowledge of the game of chess, for its own sake as an art and enjoyment, and as a means for the improvement of society. To make a tax-deductible donation to support US Chess and our World Youth teams visit www.uschess.org/donate.