Chess Levon Aronian switches to US as new regime in Armenia cuts support
over 4 years in The guardian
Bobby Fischer admirer Rex Sinquefield enlists the world No 5 in team for Moscow 2022
Armenia’s world No5, Levon Aronian, has upped sticks and announced that he will quit his native Yerevan and represent the United States in future. The 38-year-old, who memorably led his national team to Olympiad gold ahead of the Russian and American favourites at Turin 2006, Dresden 2008 and Istanbul 2012, will transfer to the billionaire Rex Sinquefield’s global centre at St Louis, venue of the annual elite Sinquefield Cup which Aronian has already won twice.
Aronian’s neighbours in town will include the world No 2, Fabiano Caruana (ex-Italy), and the world No 15, Leinier Domínguez (ex-Cuba), while his other new teammates will be the world No 7, Wesley So (ex-Philippines), the five-time US champion Hikaru Nakamura, and the rising star Jeffery Xiong, 20. Continue reading...