
GRANT OEN
Director of Events
Grant Oen grew up near Princeton, New Jersey, and learned chess at the age of 10 from his father. He soon became interested in other aspects of the game besides playing, including teaching, directing, and organizing.
As a high school student, he co-founded Central Jersey Chess, and later continued this passion when he attended Emory University and founded Southeast Chess, which hosted large tournaments in Atlanta, Georgia and was the president of the Emory University Chess Club.
Grant holds many of the highest chess tournament organization titles, including National Tournament Director, International Arbiter, and International Organizer. He has directed hundreds of tournaments including elite events such as the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz, U.S. Championship, U.S. Women’s, U.S. Junior, U.S. Junior Girls, U.S. Senior, Champions Showdown (featuring Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov, Hikaru Nakamura), World Open, Millionaire Chess Open, SuperNationals, and the Kasparov Chess Foundation University Cup.
After completing his Political Science degree at Emory in 2016, Grant moved to Charlotte to become the Director of Events at the Charlotte Chess Center, where he leads the CCC’s major events and has helped transform the center into a globally recognized and award-winning chess club that has become a top destination for American chess players.
In addition to his work at the CCC, Grant volunteers his time as a Castle Chess Camp board member, NC Chess Association Scholastic VP, and Member of FIDE’s Technical Commission. He has also worked for big chess companies such as Chess.com and the US Chess Federation. Grant is rated 2100 USCF and 2000 FIDE, and is a correspondence chess International Master with an ICCF rating over 2400. Besides chess, Grant enjoys poker, ping pong, traveling, and spending time with his wife and two young children.
