Thalia Cervantes Landeiro is a name steadily rising in the world of competitive chess. Born in Havana, Cuba, on November 28, 2002, she began her journey on the 64 squares at just seven years old. Now a Woman Grandmaster (WGM) and FIDE Master (FM), Cervantes represents the United States on the international stage, bringing a sharp, fearless style and an underdog mentality that continues to turn heads.
From Cuba to St. Louis
Thalia was born into a culture where chess runs deep. In her early years, she trained under Cuban Grandmaster Walter Arencibia and quickly began to collect titles. She won the U12 category at the Central American and Caribbean Championship and followed it with a victory in the U14 Havana Provincial Championship.
In 2014, her chess journey took a significant turn when she moved to the United States. Only 12 years old at the time, she quickly made an impression by winning the U19 Susan Polgar Girls’ Invitational, competing well above her age group.
Since then, she has continued to rack up titles and honors:
- Woman Candidate Master (2014)
- Woman FIDE Master (2017)
- Woman International Master (2018)
- FIDE Master (2020)
- Woman Grandmaster (2021)
Her peak FIDE rating reached 2338 in June 2021. Currently (July 2025), she holds ratings of 2278 in standard, 2190 in rapid, and 2185 in blitz.
A Star on the U.S. Team
Cervantes has proudly worn the red, white, and blue, most notably earning a silver medal with Team USA at the 2021 Online Women’s Chess Olympiad. In 2022, she placed 3rd at the U.S. Women’s Chess Championship, and also clinched 2nd in the U.S. Junior Girls’ Championship. She’s been a key player in back-to-back team victories at the Pan-American Collegiate Chess Championship (2022 and 2023), playing for an all-female team.
Currently based in St. Louis, Missouri, Thalia is an undergraduate student at Saint Louis University, where she studies Sports Business at the Chaifetz School of Business. Unsurprisingly, she’s also part of the school’s top-tier chess team.
Thalia Cervantes Landeiro displays a versatile and well-prepared opening repertoire. With the white pieces, she frequently opens with 1.d4, favoring solid yet flexible systems such as the Queen’s Pawn Opening: English Rat Defense, her most played line.
She’s also shown deep preparation in the Alekhine Anti-Grünfeld Variation of the King’s Indian Defense, and often navigates classic lines like the Queen’s Gambit Declined and the Bogo-Indian Defense. With Black, she leans into both classical and modern defenses, responding to 1.e4 with the Giuoco Pianissimo, and deploying sharp counterplay through the Najdorf Variation of the Sicilian Defense.
Against 1.d4, she’s comfortable meeting aggression head-on, playing systems like the Queen’s Gambit Accepted: Alekhine Variation or staying solid with the Berlin Defense in the Ruy López. Her wide opening repertoire reflects her adaptability and willingness to meet opponents on their terms—or take them out of book entirely.
More Than Just a Chessboard
In interviews and rapid-fire Q&As, Thalia Cervantes reveals a personality that’s as vibrant as her gameplay. She prefers being the underdog rather than the tournament favorite and describes herself as a “sore loser who hides it well.” Her favorite drink is coffee, her snack of choice is chocolate, and she once played chess in a grocery store on her phone during Titled Tuesday.
If she could change the color of chess pieces forever? She’d go with blue and gold. Her dream chess tournament would include her and three fellow U.S. Women’s players. Her worst chess nightmare? Drawing GM Hikaru Nakamura in an online game, then flagging on time.
She’s a fan of Chess960 aka Freestyle Chess (“really fun and creative”), would choose a personal library over a gym, and prefers texting to calling. When asked whether she’d rather understand and talk to animals or fly one hour a day, her choice was clear: “Understand and talk to animals, for sure.”
Looking Ahead
With her sharp instincts, competitive drive, and strong academic foundation, Thalia Cervantes Landeiro represents a new wave of modern grandmasters: young, fearless, and multidimensional. Whether she’s preparing for her next tournament or mentoring rising players, she’s doing more than playing the game, she’s helping shape its future.
I’m Xuan Binh, the founder of Attacking Chess, and the Deputy Head of Communications at the Vietnam Chess Federation (VCF). My chess.com and lichess rating is above 2300, in both blitz and bullet.