Nineteen year old International Master (IM) Varuzhan Akobian of Glendale, CA won the U.S. Junior Chess Championship, held July 26-31, 2003 at the World Chess Hall of Fame and Sidney Samole Chess Museum in Miami, Florida. The top American chess players under age 20 as of January 1, 2003 were invited to participate in the tournament. Games from the tournament were broadcast live on USChessLive, the official chess server of the United States Chess Federation. Akobian had seven wins and two draws to score eight out of a possible nine points. As a result of this victory, Akobian will be seeded into the 2004 United State Chess Championship.

IM Dmitry Schneider of New City, NY took second place with 6 points. FIDE Master (FM) Lev Milman of Woodbury, NY finished third with 5.5 points. FM Matthew Hoekstra of Charlotte, NC finished fourth with 5 points. Women�s FIDE Master Tatev Abrahamyan of Glendale, CA finished fifth with 4.5 points. National Master (NM) Joshua Friedel of Goffstown, NH, FM Bruci Lopez of Miami, FL and FM Daniel Fernandez of Florida tied for sixth place with 3.5 points each. FM Philip Wang of Reno, NV finished ninth with 3 points. NM John Rouleau of Rockville, MD finished tenth with 2.5 points.

Akobian is no stranger to success. He was the winner of the prestigious 2002 Samford Fellowship, and he has won many tournaments including the John Rowell Invitational, the Imre Koenig Memorial, and the 2002 Western Class Championship. He tied for first place in the 2002 World Open, and he is only one norm shy of the International Grandmaster title. Varuzhan enjoys football and fishing when he is not playing chess.

The World Chess Hall of Fame & Sidney Samole Museum�whose landmark building, sporting a 45-foot rook-tower, is located just off the Florida Turnpike near 152nd St. S.W. in Miami�is the official museum for both the World Chess Federation and the U.S. Chess Federation, the governing bodies of the game of chess for the world and the United States. The Museum�s interactive displays, theatre and collection of personal artifacts from the world�s greatest players tell the story of chess and its masters from its beginnings to modern times.

Akobian says that his best game was his first round victory over Hoekstra:

White: IM Varuzhan Akobian (2624)
Black: FM Matthew Hoekstra (2368)

1.d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bg5 c5 4. c3 d5 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Nbd2 Be7 7. Bd3 b6 8. O-O O-O 9. Ne5 Ne5 10. de5 Nd7 11. Be7 Qe7 12. f4 f5 13. ef gf 14. Rf3 Rf7 15. Rg3 Rg7 16. Qh5 Rg3 17. hg3 f5 18. Nf3 Nf6 19. Qh4 Qg7 20. Ne5 Nd7 21. g4 Ne5 22. fe5 Qe5 23. Qd8 Kf7 24. Kf2 f4 25. Re1 Qf6 26. Qc7 Kf8 27. ef Qh4 28. g3 Qh2 29. Kf3 Qd2 30. Qd8 Kf7 31. Bb5 Ba6 32. Qd7 Kf8 33. Qd6 Kg7 34. Qe5 Kf8 35. Qf6 1-0

The United States Chess Federation, founded in 1939, serves as the governing body for chess in the United States and is devoted to extending the role of chess in American society. It promotes the study and knowledge of the game of chess, for its own sake as an art and enjoyment, and as a means for the improvement of society. The USCF is a not-for-profit membership organization with more than 90,000 members. For more information, please see http://www.uschess.org.