This article was originally published on stlpublicradio.org on June 11.
They say good things come to those who wait. Unfortunately, that’s shaping up to be true.
Wesley So, the 15th highest-rated chess player in the world with a FIDE rating of 2744, recently announced his intentions to switch to the U.S. Chess Federation (from the Philippines’ federation) for reasons rather obvious: He’s already here -- and he seems to like it.So is the 20-year-old Filipino phenom who led Webster University’s world-class chess team to back-to-back national titles in his first two years here in St. Louis. He is the eighth-youngest grandmaster in history, as well as one of the fastest-ever to reach the 2600-rating plateau. And since his arrival in the U.S., So has kicked his game up to another gear appropriate to the next-level of chess he has recently entered.
So will make a huge impact representing the U.S. on the international scene -- as the addition of any top-20 world player would -- dramatically increasing American chances to medal in Chess Olympiads and World Team Chess Championships. ...
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