Italian American chess grandmaster Fabiano Caruana is pursuing another remarkable achievement at the 2026 U.S. Chess Championship in Saint Louis, Missouri, where he hopes to secure his fifth consecutive national title and sixth overall.
The 34-year-old champion has dominated American chess since 2022, winning four consecutive championships through 2025. Another victory would match Samuel Reshevsky’s historic streak of five straight titles, achieved between 1936 and 1942.
Caruana’s career reflects a unique connection between Italy and the United States. Born in Miami in 1992 and raised partly in New York, he holds dual Italian and American citizenship. After initially representing the United States, he switched his chess federation affiliation to Italy in 2005.
During his Italian years, Caruana captured four national championships – in 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2011 – winning every edition he entered during that period.
In June 2015, he returned to the American federation and immediately demonstrated his extraordinary abilities, claiming his first U.S. Championship in 2016.
With five American titles already secured, Caruana ranks among the most successful players in the competition’s history. A sixth victory would place him alongside Walter Browne, behind only Bobby Fischer and Reshevsky, who each won eight championships.
The 2026 tournament features 12 competitors and forms part of an event offering more than $400,000 in combined prize money.
