Highlights from NYC Chess Norms 19th Invitational: GM and IM Round Robins, Big News in GM-A and GM-B Sections

NYC Chess Norms Hosts 19th Invitational: Big News in GM Sections

From November 7 through 11, NYC Chess Norms hosted its 19th invitational, featuring two GM and two IM Round Robins as well as a fifth Scheveningen section. While no GM norms were achieved, there was still plenty of excitement in the GM-A and GM-B sections.

In the GM-A section, GM Pawel Teclaf and IM Brewington Hardaway tied for first with impressive 6/9 scores. Hardaway, who already had all three GM norms, was aiming to break the 2500 FIDE rating threshold needed for the GM title. A crucial round four battle against IM Kyron Griffith settled the question, with Hardaway’s live FIDE rating reaching 2500.4, making him a GM-Elect.

In the GM-B section, GM Emilio Cordova claimed first place with a strong 7/9 score. Despite no GM norms achieved in this section, 12-year-old FM Aaron Reeve Mendes from Canada earned his first IM norm by finishing tied for third with a 5½/9 score.

The IM-C tournament was won by GM Vojtech Plat and FM Zachary Tanenbaum, with Tanenbaum earning valuable rating points for his performance. In the IM-D section, GM Azer Mirzoev led all scorers with 7/9.

In the six-round Scheveningen section, FM Joshua Colas and CM Pedro Espinosa were the top scorers among masters and challengers, respectively.

All games from the event were broadcast on Lichess and can be found on their website. This was the last NYC Chess Norms event for the year, with the 2025 Winter Invitational scheduled for January 16 through 20.