Our student Nikash Vemparala, recently tied for first place at the 2024 National Middle School championship in Atlanta, Georgia. He entered the tournament being 11th in the nation for his grade, with a rating of 2171, leaving with the title of 2024 K-8 national champion. He also tied for first in a blitz championship at this event. Through this tournament, he won a total of 6 games and drew 1. Nikash's 6th round in the tournament was against FM Eric Chang Liu, with a rating of 2468, where the two players finished with a draw. Both players won their final rounds, concluding the tournament, resulting in them being co-champions. By the tiebreaker, Nikash was rewarded with the official title.
Nikash has been a part of our program since 2017, and he has greatly progressed through the years. This was a major national tournaments, Where he placed second multiple times. The 2024 National Middle School champion is his first national title.
All of Nikash's games are here: https://www.chess.com/events/2024-us-national-middle-school-championship/games
USCF Article: https://new.uschess.org/news/flash-report-liu-and-vemparala-are-2024-national-middle-school-champions