SLU Chess Qualifies for Collegiate Chess Championship
Saint Louis University chess teams are heading to the Collegiate Chess Championship.
The Billikens recently competed in the 2026 Pan-American Intercollegiate Chess Championship in Oak Brook, IL. SLU’s A Team finished fourth and secured a spot Collegiate Chess Championship finals, known as the President's Cup or colloquially as the “Final Four.” Additionally, the SLU B-Team was the top women’s squad at the tournament and will advance to the inaugural Women's President’s Cup.
The Collegiate Chess Championship finals will take place in late March.
SLU earned its spot in the Final Four with a last-round draw against Webster University. The Billikens return to the Final Four looking to win their second National Championship after winning the title in 2022.
Members of the Saint Louis University A Chess team include Grandmaster Aryan Chopra, Grandmaster Viktor Gazik, Grandmaster Nikolozi Kacharava, International Master Tianqi Wang, and National Master Shelev Oberoi.
SLU head coach Grandmaster Varuzhan Akobian said Chopra really distinguished himself in his first year at SLU with the top Board 1 performance of the tournament.
Akobian said the Saint Louis University B Chess team continued its reputation as one of the top all-female collegiate chess teams in the nation with another national title as the Top All-Female Chess Team at the 2026 Pan-American Intercollegiate Chess Championship. The Billikens also claimed that title in 2024.
Akobian called the women’s team’s performance “impressive” and said he was excited for them to take part in the first-ever Women’s National Championship.
Members of the Saint Louis University B Chess team include Women's Grandmaster Thalia Cervantes, Women's Grandmaster Gabriela Antova, Women's International-Master Sila Caglar, and Women's FIDE-master Dhyana Patel. Caglar secured the top performance of any female player in the tournament with 4.5/6.
The Saint Louis University C Chess Team picked up its first national title in the open section, playing alongside the A and B teams. With a score of 3/6, they secured the Division 2 (U2200) national title for SLU.
Members of the Saint Louis University C Chess team include National Master Nicky Ladan, National Master Ralph Tan, National Master Hemachandra Rambha, and Expert Matthew Kent Pikus.
"I'm proud of all three teams,” Akobian said. “This was one of our most successful Pan-American Intercollegiate championships in recent years for our teams. Myself and assistant coach Darius Swiercz will be working tirelessly to train the A and B teams for the upcoming President's Cup, where we hope to win both tournaments."