New York here I come! Erigaisi receives US visa

Arjun Erigaisi gets US Visa for World Rapid and Blitz Championships

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi breathed a sigh of relief after receiving his US visa to compete in the upcoming World Rapid and Blitz Championships in New York, beginning December 26.

The world No 4 Indian had appealed to the US Embassy on Friday to expedite the process of granting him the necessary visa to participate in the tournament, which will feature top players such as Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Ian Nepomniachtchi and Boris Gelfand.

"I have received the US Visa! I am honestly overwhelmed and very grateful for so much positive response to my situation," Erigaisi wrote on his 'X' handle.

"Thank you to the @USAndIndia & @USAmbIndia for the quick turn around! Thank you @MEAIndia @anandmahindra @narangnitin @aicfchess @IndiaSports @FIDE_chess @USChess @QBResearch @mgd1_esports journalists and many other well wishers who went out of their way to make this happen."

"I hope to make all of you and our country proud of my achievements. New York here I come," he added.

On Friday, Erigaisi had reached out to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and the All India Chess Federation (AICF) via social media, requesting their assistance in securing the visa.

"@USAndIndia Last week I submitted my passport to you for visa stamping and it still has not been returned. I request you to please expedite the process and return my passport as soon as possible as I need it for my travel to New York for World Rapid & Blitz Championship," he had written on 'X'.

"If anyone can help me with this please DM."

Erigaisi, who recently became the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to achieve the gold-standard ELO rating of 2800, has been in sensational form this year. He claimed an individual gold as well as a team title in India's historic performance in Chess Olympiad.

Among the leading players competing in the championship are Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So, Levon Aronian, Jeffrey Xiong, Leinier Dominguez Perez, Hans Niemann and Sam Shankland.