As the American Cup Tournament concludes at the World Chess Hall of Fame, International Master Carissa Yip has made her debut. But her time in St. Louis is far from over—this summer, she plans to relocate to the city to elevate her game in the chess capital of the United States.
Yip started playing chess when she was just 7 years old. Now, the 21-year-old chess phenom is taking time off from Stanford University to refine her skills and perfect her game.
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“I’ve always wanted to balance academics and chess at the same time,” Yip says. “It became clear that it was increasingly impossible to be able to do both properly, so I ended up deciding to take time off from school to just go all in on chess. St. Louis was the place to go because it’s the chess capital of the world. There are so many strong players here. It’s the optimal place to train and prepare.”
Yip says being a part of the local chess club is the main motivation for her move, but she is also eager to participate in local initiatives that support women in chess. The World Chess Hall of Fame has also played a role in supporting such efforts, curating various exhibitions centered on women in chess and supporting initiatives that uplift women in the game.
READ MORE: A guide to chess in St. Louis
“The main draw of St Louis for me is the chess club,” Yip says. “Besides the training in particular, there’s also this aspect of the club having a commitment to supporting more women in chess, which is something that I care a lot about. And so I’m kind of hoping to get involved in some initiatives there as well, I’m looking forward to that.”
To train, players often immerse themselves in countless games leading up to a competition. While this demands huge amounts of time and energy, Yip considers it one of her favorite aspects of preparation.
“I think the most interesting part of training for me is the training matches that you play,” Yip says. “You can see this with high-level tournaments. Before the matches, people are always playing hundreds and hundreds of training games in preparation. I think it takes up more time and energy than other aspects of training, which can be what makes it a bit more challenging, but I also think it’s kind of fun.”
Outside of her love of chess, Yip says she enjoys playing her electric guitar, listening to music, journaling, and thrift shopping. This summer, she is also looking forward to exploring St. Louis.
“I think it’s a great city, not one of the more overwhelming ones,” Yip says. “There’s a lot of beautiful things to do around here.”
