It gives me great pleasure to announce that I have been chosen to be the Assistant Arbiter at the 2009 United States Chess Championship. This year’s Championship will see twenty-four of the best players in the country battling it out over 9 rounds from May 8-17 in St. Louis, Missouri, for the title of 2009 US Chess Champion and nearly $200,000 in prize money. Participating in the event are some of the strongest Grandmasters in the chess world such as Gata Kamsky, Hikaru Nakamura, Alexander Onischuk and last year’s Champion Yury Shulman.  International Arbiter Carol Jarecki will be the Chief Arbiter. Complete information regarding the 2009 US Chess Championship can be found at the tournament website, http://www.uschesschamps.com.