The Blitz Tournament of the Americas, organizedby theMechanics Institute in partnership withKmadaChess and Chess SinFronteras, was held onChess.com onSaturday, Aug. 15. The free eventaimed toshowcase the talents of titled men and women players from across the Americas,bringing our diverse communities together andbuilding new partnerships.

Through these collaborative partnerships and word of mouth,the 9-round open Blitz (G/3+2) battleregistered 91 playersand represented15 different countries,including 9 Grandmasters, 13 International Mastersand 20 titled women.

The tournament wasstreamed"> by the Mechanics Instituteon Twitch, as well as several other streamersfromparticipating countries, including WIM Ivette Garcia Morales and GM Josh Friedel.It was a phenomenal event in its simplicity of message and the strength of the participating players: When it comes to efforts to unite people through chess, chess players are generous with their time and come out in full force.

CubanGM Juan Carlos Obregon Rivero won with a score of 8/9.GM Conrad Holt took second place with a score of 7.5/9,whileIM Andrew Hong and FM Kyron Griffithtied for thirdwith 7/9.CubanWGM Lisandra Teresa Ordaz Valdesfinished asthe topfemalewith 6/9, andPerusAnn Lindsay Chumpitaz Carbajalalso posted an excellent performancewith 5.5/9.

Threeplayers remained with perfect scoresafter three rounds,includingObregon Rivero,ColumbianGM Andres Gallegoand two-time U.S. Champion GM Patrick Wolff. Wolff is a Mechanics Institute Trustee who is not an active chess player, but hedefinitely showedhe has the fire and skill to match up against some of the very best. He faced off against Holt in roundfourand delivered this win against a very strong blitz player.

Obregon Riverobeat Wolffin roundfive,setting up this round 6 matchupwithGallegabetween the onlytwoplayers leftunbeaten.

Afterhis loss to Wolff,Holt went on a tear with three consecutive victories, setting upthiseighth-roundmatchupwith Obregon Rivero.

Heading into the final round, Obregon Rivero needed only adrawto win the event, though hehadto get passedyoung phenom IM ChristopherYoo, whoseamazing tactical abilityin blitzcould posea danger to any player in the world. But the GM closed the show like a champion, taking the final roundand winning in clear first place.

Girl power wasdefinitely presentin this event, as women and girls made up more than 20% of the field.Here is a nice win fromValdesagainst IM Abhimanyu Mishra.

The Blitz Tournament of the Americas showed how passion and love for the game can bring out the best in people. Players came out not for prizes or titles, but for competition, for the opportunity to play new players and make new connections. It wasan event people could follow from their homes and enjoy, knowing that it was all done in the spirit of giving.

We would like to thank the teamsfromKmadaChess andChess SinFronterasfor their collaboration and partnership for this historic free event, as well asall the players for being generous with their time, all the streamers who helped promote the event, and the chess community at-large for rallying together during the pandemic to keep chess going.

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Blitz Tournament of the Americas: Bringing Cultures and Communities Together Through Chess - uschess.org