ST. LOUIS, MO—The 2025 U.S. Chess Championships have entered their decisive phase, with Round 8 on Monday defining key standings before the second rest day. Both the Open and Women’s tournaments saw critical results, though the emotional weight of the day was felt across the playing hall, as the round began with a moment of silence for the late Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky.
The Open section delivered an intense day of chess with just two decisive results among the top players, allowing one contender to creep closer to the leaders.
GM Levon Aronian was the main mover of the day, securing a full point against GM Sam Shankland in a hyper-sharp Scheveningen Sicilian. This victory places Aronian just half a point behind the co-leaders, Caruana and So, injecting more drama into the final rounds.
Co-leaders GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Wesley So both drew their games. Caruana was held to a draw by GM Ray Robson in a Queen’s Gambit Exchange Variation that led to a complex but eventually drawn endgame at move 67.
GM Andy Woodward bounced back with a strong performance to defeat GM Hans Niemann, marking Niemann’s second consecutive loss and putting a significant dent in his tournament hopes.
U.S. Women’s Championship: Alice Lee Takes a Full-Point Lead
The Women’s Championship continued to be defined by decisive outcomes, with the young leader pulling away from the field.
IM Alice Lee capitalised on a mistake by her opponent, IM Tatev Abrahamyan, to secure the victory. This win extended her lead to a full point over a group of four players, putting her in an excellent position to claim her first U.S. Women’s title with three rounds left to play.
GM Irina Krush also picked up a vital win against FM Thalia Cervantes, with Krush noting that her opponent’s error came in time trouble. Defending champion IM Carissa Yip defeated FM Megan Paragua to join the chase group in a tie for second place.
The opening of Round 8 was marked by a moment of silence for Grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky, whose unexpected death at age 29 sent shockwaves across the entire global chess community.
The emotional toll was openly discussed by the players. GM Levon Aronian stated: “Honestly, if there was a possibility not to play, I would take it… I just thought I didn’t care about the result. I’ll just play whatever.”
GM Irina Krush also spoke of the difficulty: “I feel pretty lucky that I managed to win because for the first half of the game, I was just thinking about the news that we received like a minute before starting to play… It’s very shocking.”
The tournament pauses now for the second rest day, with Round 9 set to resume on Wednesday, October 22, at 1:30 p.m. ET, with high stakes as the leaders brace for the final push.
