The Next Generation of Chess Masters

He is half the age of 10 year old master Nicholas Nip--and nearly half of his rating too! World U12 Champion Danya Naroditsky would (for once) be considered an "experienced veteran" compared to this young lad. Local GM-elects Vinay Bhat and Josh Friedel, both merely in their young 20s, are even old enough to be his father (maybe I'm pushing it).

Please join me in welcoming Arun Khemani to the local chess scene. At 1047 on the October Top 100 list, he is the only 5 year old in the country with an established USCF rating above 1000. His current rating is even higher than my first USCF rating of 1023 when I was 18 years old. Of course, Arun plays for fun and still has a long way to go to become a serious competitor. So far, however, he appears to be on the right track after scoring 50% in the U1400 section at the CalChess Labor Day tournament. Good luck Arun!