Before We Make the First Move...
For this year's U.S. Chess Championship, I was thinking about a song.
Not a chess song. Not even a song about competition.
It's Do-Re-Mi from The Sound of Music, written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II.
Ray, a drop of golden sun...
Me, a name I call myself...
And I thought...
Why not make it a chess song?
Because in this tournament, every note has a player, every player has a story, and every round has a position to remember.
Doe, a deer, a female deer...
Do goes to Rachel Li.
Rachel is only 16 years old, and this is her first U.S. Chess Championship.
First championship. First move. First Do.
Every great chess career has to start somewhere.
And Rachel has just stepped onto the biggest stage of her young career.
Ray, a drop of golden sun...
Re a ray of golden sun.
And again, this one belongs to Rachel.
Because sometimes you don't need to be the favorite.
Sometimes you just need an opportunity.
A little sunlight. A little confidence.
And perhaps... a championship waiting at the end of it.
Me, a name I call myself...
Mi this one's for me.
And for everyone watching.
Because that's the wonderful thing about chess.
The players make the moves...
But we get to sit back, watch the battle unfold, argue about the positions, second-guess the grandmasters...
Even when we absolutely did not.
Far, a long, long way to run...
Fa goes to Carissa Yip.
Our defending champion.
But this year, Carissa has found herself in unfamiliar territory.
She's fallen behind.
And now she has a long way to run if she's going to catch the leaders.
In chess, though, the tournament isn't over just because you're behind.
There are still moves to make. There are still mistakes to punish. And there is still time on the clock.
start running.
Sew, a needle pulling thread...
Sol belongs to Wesley So, his fourth US Championship.
And Wesley has been threading his way through this tournament beautifully.
From the beginning, he has been playing strong, consistent chess.
No losses. No collapse. No unnecessary drama.
Just one good move after another.
Round after round... position after position...
He's been sewing this championship together.
A note to follow Sol...
And who better than Fabiano Caruana?
The four-time U.S. Champion has been trying to follow Wesley.
Trying to catch him. Trying to close the gap.
But this time...
Wesley was just a little too far ahead.
Fabiano couldn't quite catch him.
and still finish second.
A drink with jam and bread...
And this one isn't for a player.
It's for the people bringing the chess to us.
Our broadcast team:
GM Yasser Seirawan
GM Maurice Ashley
IM Irene Sukandar
WGM Katerina Nemcova
Ben Underwood
They're not moving the pieces. They're not sitting at the boards.
But they are carrying the notes of the tournament to everyone watching.
They explain the tactics. They explain the strategy. They explain the brilliant moves...
And sometimes explain why the move we thought was brilliant... was actually a blunder.
They help us understand the story.
And without them...
we'd just be staring at a bunch of pieces wondering why somebody hasn't moved the knight yet.
DO
And now...
we come back to Do.
But this time, Do means something different.
It means completion.
And it brings us back to Rachel Li.
Sixteen years old.
Her first U.S. Championship.
And now...
Why not end with Wesley So?
Because Wesley has already done it.
Four times.
Rachel hasn't.
Not until now.
One song. One championship. Hundreds of moves. Countless positions. And a whole lot of stories.
Rachel Li
2026 U.S. Chess Champion.
let's play some chess.