Alice Teresa Lee (born October 13, 2009) is an American chess player with the titles of International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She is the youngest American female, and the third youngest female worldwide, to achieve the IM title. Her tournament accomplishments include being a two-time Women’s American Cup champion, a two-time U.S. Girls’ Junior champion, a three-time World Youth champion, and a two-time Women’s Olympiad medalist.
Alice Lee started playing chess at age 6 in her school’s chess club, where her older brother was already a member.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
By age 8, she had already earned the title of US Chess Expert, and by age 10, she had become a US Chess National Master (NM).[2][7] At age 9, she won the under-18 section of the 2019 National Girls Championships.[8][9]
Lee has set multiple records at Women's American Cup, becoming both the youngest participant and the youngest champion in the tournament’s history. She won the title in 2024 and 2025, and also finished as runner-up twice.
At age 12, she secured second place at the 2022 Women's American Cup, delivering a series of surprising victories.[15][16]
At age 13, she again finished second at the 2023 Women's American Cup. She tied two classical matches with GM Irina Krush before losing in the rapid playoffs.[17][18]
At age 14, she won the 2024 Women's American Cup by defeating GM Irina Krush in the Grand Final. Her victory places her alongside Bobby Fischer and Irina Krush as one of the youngest players to win a major chess title in the United States.[19][20][21][22]
At age 15, she successfully defended her title at the 2025 Women’s American Cup, winning all of her matches and earning $49,000 in prize money.[23][24][25]
U.S. Junior Championships
Lee started competing in the U.S. Girls' Junior Championships in 2020 at age 10.
At age 13, she won the 2023 US Girls' Junior Championship with a score of 7.5/9, making her the youngest winner in the tournament's history.[26][27]
At age 14, she successfully defended her title at the 2024 US Girls' Junior Championship.[28][29]
World Youth Championships
Lee is a three-time gold medalist at the World Youth Championships (under-10 girls section in 2019; under-12 girls section in 2020; under-12 girls section in 2021).[30][31][32] She was also the winner of the online FIDE Youth Rapid World Cup (under-12 girls section in 2021).[33]
International Team Competitions
Lee began representing the USA Women's Team in international competitions at age 13. So far, she has won three medals: two from the Chess Olympiads (a team bronze and an individual silver) and one from the World Team Championships (an individual gold).
At age 13, Lee played on the top board for Team USA at the 2023 World Women's Team Championship, where she won the individual gold medal with a score of 7.5/11. The U.S. women’s team achieved their best-ever finish in the tournament, placing 4th.[34][35]
At age 14, she competed in the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Budapest, helping Team USA secure its first medal in 16 years by winning the bronze. With a score of 8/10, she also earned the individual silver medal on board 4.[36]
Other Notable Tournaments
At age 14, Lee became the youngest participant in the history of the Cairns Cup, one of the world's strongest female super tournaments.[37] She finished with a score of 4/9.[38]
At age 15, she secured clear second place at the 2025 Cairns Cup with a score of 5.5/9 (just half a point short of a GM norm) and a performance rating of 2572, earning $50,000 in prize money.[39]
FIDE titles/ratings
Lee is the youngest American female to achieve the IM title (at 13 years and 7 months old), breaking the previous record held by Carissa Yip (at 16 years and 1 month old).[4] Worldwide, Lee is one of three female players to earn the IM title at age 13, joining GMs Judit Polgár and Kateryna Lagno.[1][40]
At age 11, she earned the WIM title by winning the under-18 girls section of the 2021 North American Youth Championships.[41]
At the 2022 Southwest Class Championships, Lee defeated IM Viktor Gazik (2543) to clinch her first IM and WGM norms.[42][43]
At the 2023 Pro Chess League, she defeated GM Matthias Bluebaum (2661) (Berlin Bears) and GM Bogdan-Daniel Deac (2700) (Croatia Bulldogs) to help St. Louis Arch Bishops reach the playoffs; in the quarter finals, she drew GM Hikaru Nakamura (2775) (Gotham Knights).[1][45][46][47][48]
At the 2024 Women's American Cup, she defeated GM Irina Krush (2421) in the Grand Final to become one of the youngest players to win a major chess title in the United States.[49]
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