Alexander Goldin

Grandmaster Alexander Goldin was born in Novosibirsk, Russia. Although he officially started representing the United States internationally in the 2000s, Goldin had been making his mark in U.S. tournaments for almost a decade earlier. While his victory in the 2003 American Continental Chess Championship is impressive, so is his first-place finish in the 1998 World Open. Goldin won five World Opens, but in 1998, in an event in which multiple players tying for first is the rule, not the exception, he won by a full point! The World Open has been held for over half a century and in that time only one other player has matched Goldin’s score of 8 ½ from 9 – the legendary Bent Larsen.

Goldin was first board for the United States in the 2002 USA-China match and played for the U.S. in the 2004 Chess Olympiad and 2005 World Team Championship. He has continued to compete after this, but primarily in weekend tournaments of a less serious nature. Goldin was equal second in the 2019 U.S. Senior Championship and played in the 2020 event, but has seen little action since.