The Christian Science Monitor

Meet America’s top-ranked female chess player: A teenager

Carissa Yip – seen here outside a chess club in Somerville, Massachusetts, on Aug. 10, 2019 – is already a top-ranked chess player. She’s one of a growing number of girls and women who are succeeding in the traditionally male-dominated world of chess tournaments.

Just days before her 11th birthday, Carissa Yip became the youngest female chess player to defeat a grandmaster. Pushing her opponent, Alexander Ivanov, to the back of the board, Carissa pounced on a crucial knight and pinned his queen. A few moves later and the match was over.

“I was feeling really proud of myself for that,” says Carissa, who turns 16 on Sept. 10. “Because when I

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