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Armenian GM Levon Aronian has completed his transfer from Armenia to the United States and is now listed as an American player on the FIDE ranking lists. Aronian moved to Saint Louis in September, and the change is expected to make the United States a powerhouse for the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Moscow, with three players in the Top 10. Alireza Firouzja, 18, is now the official world number one. 2, while Hikaru Nakamura dropped out of the December 2021 FIDE ranking list after not playing a classic game for two years.

To remind, in February GM Levon Aronian announced his decision to leave Armenia and switch to the U.S. due to “broken promises” by the current authorities. “After waiting for the fulfillment of the promises of the incumbent authorities for more than a year, I realized that I had to make a breakthrough decision to leave my native country,” he said, stating every year of expecting change is a waste of time in his career.