Samuel L. Shankland (born October 1, 1991) is an American
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
grandmaster. He won the
U.S. Chess Championship in 2018.
Shankland was California State Champion in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012, and Champion of State Champions in 2009. He won bronze at the 2008
World U18 Championship, and was US Junior Champion in 2010.
He earned his international master title in 2008 and his grandmaster title in 2011. Shankland surpassed a
FIDE
The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( Fédération Internationale des Échecs), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national c ...
rating
A rating is an evaluation or assessment of something, in terms of quality, quantity, or some combination of both.
Rating or ratings may also refer to:
Business and economics
* Credit rating, estimating the credit worthiness of an individual, c ...
of 2600 in 2012, and entered the world's top 100 players in 2014.
As a member of the United States team, he won the gold medal for the best individual performance on the reserve board at the
41st Chess Olympiad
The 41st Chess Olympiad ( no, Den 41. Sjakkolympiade), organised by the FIDE, Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took pla ...
. He also was part of the team at the
42nd Chess Olympiad
The 42nd Chess Olympiad ( az, 42-ci Şahmat Olimpiadası; also known as the Baku Chess Olympiad), organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an openAlthough sometimes referred to as the "men's division", this ...
, where the United States won team gold for the first time in forty years. In 2018, he won the U.S. Chess Championship, simultaneously breaching the 2700 barrier for the first time in his career.
Early and personal life
Shankland was born in
Berkeley
Berkeley most often refers to:
*Berkeley, California, a city in the United States
**University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California
* George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher
Berkeley may also refer ...
, California,
[ to Leslie and Jim Shankland.][Sam Shankland-Orinda's Chess Grandmaster]
''Lamorinda Weekly'' He lived there until he was four, when his brother was born and the family moved to Orinda.[
His father taught him how to play chess at the age of 6, but he did not give the game much attention until he joined the chess club at Glorietta Elementary School in fourth grade. He quickly surpassed the level of chess at Glorietta, and began playing in tournaments by the age of 11.][
In 2014, he graduated from ]Brandeis University
, mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = NECHE
, president = Ronald D. Liebowitz
, pro ...
with a BS in economics.
In 2016, he competed in the first season of FOX
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
's reality game show '' Kicking & Screaming'', finishing in eighth place with his survivalist partner Caleb Garmany.
Chess career
2008
Shankland began his rise to prominence in 2008, winning the Pacific Coast Open and the California State Championship. He made his international debut at the World Youth Chess Championship
The World Youth Chess Championship is a FIDE-organized worldwide chess competition for boys and girls under the age of 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18. Twelve world champions are crowned every year. Since 2015, the event has been split into "World Cade ...
under-18 section, where he tied for first place with Ivan Saric and Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son, taking home the bronze medal on tiebreak score and earning the title of International Master
FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...
.
2010
After losing his first two games in the 2010 US Junior Championship, Shankland won six out of the last seven rounds to tie for first place, and went on to clinch sole first with two back to back Armageddon
According to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Armageddon (, from grc, Ἁρμαγεδών ''Harmagedōn'', Late Latin: , from Hebrew: ''Har Məgīddō'') is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies ...
victories over Ray Robson
Ray Robson (born October 25, 1994) is an American chess player. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 2010. Robson fulfilled the requirements for the title in 2009 at the age of 14 years, 11 months and 16 days, making him the young ...
and Parker Zhao. This result qualified him for the 2011 U.S. Chess Championship.
2011
In January 2011, Shankland earned the title of Grandmaster at the Berkeley International.
He finished third in the 2011 U.S. Chess Championship, after first defeating Alexander Onischuk
Alexander Onischuk (; born September 3, 1975) is a Ukrainian-American chess player. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1994, and won the 2006 U.S. championship.
Career
In 1991 Onischuk finished second in the world under 16 cha ...
in a playoff game, and then Robert Hess in an Armageddon match. This result qualified him for the 2011 FIDE
The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( Fédération Internationale des Échecs), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national c ...
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
.
In the 2011 World Cup, Shankland defeated Hungarian super-grandmaster Peter Leko
Peter Leko ( hu, Lékó Péter; born September 8, 1979) is a Hungarian chess player and commentator. He became the world's youngest grandmaster in 1994. He narrowly missed winning the Classical World Chess Championship 2004: the match was draw ...
in the first round, but lost to Abhijeet Gupta
Abhijeet Gupta (born 16 October 1989) is an Indian chess player with the title of Grandmaster (GM). Gupta is the first player to win the Commonwealth Chess Championship five times. He has completed his early education from A's Steward Senior ...
in the second. Shankland's victory over Leko in the first round was the biggest upset of the tournament.
2012
Shankland won the Northern California International ahead of strong GMs Georg Meier
Georg "Schorsch" Meier (; 9 November 1910 – 19 February 1999) was a German motorcycle racer famous for being the first foreign winner of the prestigious Senior TT, the Blue Riband race of the Isle of Man TT Races, in 1939 riding for the f ...
, Alejandro Ramirez, Yury Shulman
Yuri Shulman ( be, Юрый Маркавіч Шульман, russian: Ю́рий Ма́ркович Шу́льман; born April 29, 1975 in Minsk, Byelorussian SSR, USSR) is a Belarusian American chess player who holds the FIDE title of Grandma ...
, and Bartlomiej Macieja.
2013
In 2013, Shankland made his debut for the US national team at the Pan American Team Chess Championship
The Pan American Team Chess Championship is an international team chess tournament open to national federations affiliated to FIDE in the Americas. It is organized by the Confederation of Chess for America (CCA), and the winner qualifies to partic ...
in Campinas
Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...
, Brazil, leading them to victory with a performance rating over 2800.
Shankland was selected as the 27th Samford Fellow. The Samford is a fellowship given once a year to a promising young American player, providing the funds necessary for the recipient to devote him or herself to chess without being restrained by financial concerns.
Shankland clinched first place at the ZMDI Open in Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, edging out on tiebreak score Mikhailo Oleksienko and Georg Meier.
2014
At the 41st Chess Olympiad
The 41st Chess Olympiad ( no, Den 41. Sjakkolympiade), organised by the FIDE, Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took pla ...
in Tromsø
Tromsø (, , ; se, Romsa ; fkv, Tromssa; sv, Tromsö) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Tromsø (city), city of Tromsø.
Tromsø lies ...
, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
, Shankland took home gold for his performance as a reserve player. Going undefeated, he scored 9 points out of 10 games, giving him a performance rating of 2829 for this tournament. In round 8, Shankland defeated legendary GM Judit Polgar
Judit is a feminine given name related to Judith. Notable people with the name include:
*Judit Bar-Ilan (1958–2019), Israeli computer scientist
*Judit Elek (born 1937), Hungarian film director and screenwriter
*Judit Földing-Nagy (born 1965), ...
in her last professional game. Polgar announced her retirement from chess at the end of the event.
Shankland shared first place at the American Continental Championship, qualifying him for the 2015 World Cup.
On December 14, 2014, Shankland broke into the top 100 chess players worldwide.
2015
Following his gold medal in Tromsø, Shankland was promoted to first board of team USA for the World Team Chess Championship
The World Team Chess Championship is an international team chess event, eligible for the participation of 10 countries whose chess federations dominate their continent. It is played every two years. In chess, this tournament and the Chess Olympiads ...
, where he played with a performance rating over 2700 and drew against elite players Levon Aronian
Levon Grigori Aronian ( hy, Լևոն Գրիգորի Արոնյան, Levon Grigori Aronyan; born 6 October 1982) is an Armenians, Armenian Grandmaster (chess), chess grandmaster, who currently plays for the United States Chess Federation. A ches ...
, Alexander Grischuk
Alexander Igorevich Grischuk (born October 31, 1983) is a Russian chess grandmaster. Grischuk was the Russian champion in 2009. He is also a three-time world blitz chess champion (in 2006, 2012 and 2015).
He has competed in five Candidates T ...
, and Boris Gelfand
Boris Gelfand ( he, בוריס אברמוביץ' גלפנד; be, Барыс Абрамавіч Гельфанд, Barys Abramavich Hel'fand; russian: Борис Абрамович Гельфанд, Boris Abramovich Gel'fand; born 24 June 1968) ...
, all of whom were in the top fifteen players worldwide at the time.
Shankland took third place in the Tata Steel
Tata Steel Limited is an Indian multinational steel-making company, based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand and headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a part of the Tata Group.
Formerly known as Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited (TISCO), Tata ...
Challengers group, with a score of 9.0/13 and a performance rating of 2695.
Shankland competed in the 2015 Chess World Cup
The Chess World Cup 2015 was a 128-player single-elimination chess tournament held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 10 September to 5 October 2015.
Sergey Karjakin won the competition on tie-breaks after a four-game final against Peter Svidler. Both f ...
, where he defeated GM Ivan Popov in the first round, but lost in a tiebreak in the second round to GM Hikaru Nakamura
Christopher Hikaru Nakamura[42nd Chess Olympiad
The 42nd Chess Olympiad ( az, 42-ci Şahmat Olimpiadası; also known as the Baku Chess Olympiad), organised by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) and comprising an openAlthough sometimes referred to as the "men's division", this ...](_blank)
, where the team earned gold for the first time since 1976. In September 2016, he was ranked 57th in the world with an Elo rating
The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in zero-sum games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-American physics professor.
The Elo system was invented as an improved ch ...
of 2679.
2017
In December 2017, Shankland was runner-up at Sunway Sitges International Chess Festival, in Sitges (Barcelona, Spain), with a score of 6.0/9 (half a point behind GM Aravinth), after defeating GM Salem Saleh in a blitz chess play-off for the second place. He played the regular tournament with a performance rating of 2713.
2018
In April, Shankland took clear first in the US Chess Championship
The U.S. Chess Championship is an invitational tournament held to determine the United States chess champion. Begun as a challenge match in 1845, the U.S. Championship has been decided by tournament play for most of its long history. Since 1936, i ...
with a score of 8/11 (+6–0=5). He finished half a point, two points, and three points ahead of Fabiano Caruana
Fabiano Luigi Caruana (born July 30, 1992) is an American chess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, Caruana became a grandmaster at the age of 14 years, 11 months, and 20 days—the youngest grandmaster in the history of both Italy and the United Sta ...
, Wesley So
Wesley Barbossa So (born October 9, 1993) is a Filipino and American chess grandmaster and 3-time U.S. Chess Champion (in 2017, 2020, and 2021). He is also a three-time Philippine Chess Champion. On the March 2017 FIDE rating list, he was ran ...
, and Hikaru Nakamura
Christopher Hikaru Nakamura[Capablanca Memorial
The Capablanca Memorial is a chess tournament that has been held annually in Cuba since 1962 in honor of José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera. At the time, it was the best paid tournament in the world. Since 1974 B and C tournaments have been held ...](_blank)
, scoring 7/10 (+5–0=5) for a performance rating of 2831. This result vaulted him further up the world rankings, putting him at No. 30 with a live rating of 2717.
In June, he won the American Continental Chess Championship
The Pan American Chess Championship, also American continental Championship is an individual chess tournament organized since 1945.
First pan American championships (1945 and 1954)
The first Pan American Chess Championship was held in Hollywood ...
, finishing clear first with 9/11 (+7–0=4).American Continental Championship
Chess24
2019
In January, Shankland finished with 6.5/13 at the Tata Steel Masters, sharing 7th place in what has been called the strongest tournament in the world. He drew his first ever game with World Champion Magnus Carlsen
Sven Magnus Øen Carlsen (born 30 November 1990) is a Norwegian chess grandmaster who is the reigning five-time World Chess Champion. He is also a three-time World Rapid Chess Champion and five-time World Blitz Chess Champion. Carlsen has h ...
, and he defeated former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik
Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik (russian: Влади́мир Бори́сович Кра́мник; born 25 June 1975) is a Russian chess grandmaster. He was the Classical World Chess Champion from 2000 to 2006, and the undisputed World Chess Cha ...
in the final round (Kramnik's final classical game before retiring). Shankland reached a peak rating of 2731 and #22 in the World.
2021
In June, Shankland won the Prague Masters with 5.5/7 and a performance rating over 2900, the best result in the tournament's history.
Shankland reached the quarterfinals of the 2021 FIDE World Cup
The FIDE World Cup refers to three different events over the years. Since 2000, it has been a major chess event organized by FIDE, the International Chess Federation. Since 2005, it has been a 128-player single-elimination chess tournament, form ...
, earning a spot in the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix
The FIDE Grand Prix is a biennial series of chess tournaments, organized by FIDE and its commercial partner Agon. Each series consist of three to six chess tournaments, which form part of the qualification cycle for the World Chess Championship or ...
. In the quarterfinals he lost on tiebreaks to GM Sergey Karjakin
Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, . (born 12 January 1990) is a Russian chess grandmaster (formerly representing Ukraine). A chess prodigy, he previously held the record for the world's youngest ever grandmaster, (until it was eventually taken b ...
, 4–2.
2022
Through February and March 2022, Shankland played in the FIDE Grand Prix 2022
The FIDE Grand Prix 2022 was a series of three chess tournaments played between 4 February and 4 April 2022. The top two finishers – Hikaru Nakamura (winner) and Richárd Rapport (runner-up) – qualified for the Candidates Tournament 2022, . In the second leg, he placed second in Pool A with a 3.5/6 result. In the third leg, he tied for first with Wesley So in Pool C with a result of 3.5/6 but lost in rapid tiebreakers with a result of 0.5/2. He finished ninth in the standings with eight points.
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References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Shankland, Sam
1991 births
Living people
American chess players
Chess grandmasters
Chess Olympiad competitors
Sportspeople from Berkeley, California
Participants in American reality television series