WIM Alexey Root, PhD

Alexey Root is a Woman International Master and the 1989 U.S. Women's chess champion. Her peak US Chess rating was 2260. She has a PhD in education from UCLA. You can find her books on chess on Amazon.com.

International Chess Players in Texas

Discover how Texas blends global culture and competition, from Texas’ Eiffel Tower to chess tournaments across the state. More 🡢

Bobby Fischer’s Chess Queen: A Review

On January 14, 2026, New In Chess published Bobby Fischer’s Chess Queen: The untold story of the Indian woman who captured the American World Champion’s heart. Its author is Woman International Master Shernaz Kennedy. Her memoi.r is a quick and entertaining read More 🡢

2026 Pan-Am: Missouri Schools Show Chess Prowess

The 2026 Pan-Am was held January 2–5 in Oak Brook, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Webster University, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, the University of Missouri, and Saint Louis University finished first, second, third, and fourth (respectively) in the Open section. More 🡢

George H. Mackenzie: One of the Old Masters

According to his biographer John S. Hilbert, George H. Mackenzie was universally loved during his lifetime but utterly forgotten after his death. “George H. Mackenzie: A Chess Biography” presents Mackenzie’s games and stories about his life and times. More 🡢

Global Chess League 2025: Great Start by Defending Champs Triveni Continental Kings

The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League is the world’s first and largest official franchise chess league. FIDE and Tech Mahindra are celebrating Season 3, which features 13 of the 15 top-rated players in the world. More 🡢

Alexey Root and Magnus Carlsen, October 10, 2024

My Photos with Five World Chess Champions

In early October, at the newly-renovated Saint Louis Chess Club, two former World Chess Champions participated in the first Clutch Chess: The Legends. They played Chess960, a variant where the pieces on the back rank are scrambled, in the same way, for White and Black. For example, White’s queen might begin on a1, and Black’s queen might begin on a8. GM Garry Kasparov defeated GM Viswanathan Anand in a three-day showdown that captivated fans around the world. More 🡢

Natasha Christiansen and Alexey Root, November 15, 2025

No Draw Offers in Chess and a Playoff Under Protest

At the 2025 U.S. Senior Women’s Championship, three people told me that I lack fighting spirit. And that I have a peaceful nature. They are right. I like to offer draws, and I like to accept draw offers. Therefore, the best tournaments for me to play in would be those that prohibit offering draws. Then I would be forced to fight in my chess games, and my chess skills would likely improve. More 🡢

Titas Stremavicius eliminated Wesley So from Chess World Cup

Grandmaster (GM) Titas Stremavicius (Lithuania) eliminated GM Wesley So (USA), one of the top 10 players in the world, from the FIDE World Cup 2025. In their first game, Stremavicius, an alumnus of The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), had drawn as Black. As White on November 5, 2025, he had a time advantage in a complicated endgame. With less than a minute and a half left on his clock, So resigned. Stremavicius moved on to round 3 of the World Cup. More 🡢