Chess Tourneys

Hey there!

Mr. John Manahan sent me a lot of news articles and links and we are grateful, of course I'll share the generaosity of others to all of you.

FM Jesse Noel Sales tied for third in Sydney Rapid Grand Prix 1st Leg: IM George Xie, Jason Hu of Australia were tied with 6 points and took the first two places while FM Sales tied with Mandla Blair.

Joey Antonio leads a big batch of Filipino chessers to Bangkok Chess Open next month, here is the recent list of players.

The 9th ASEAN Age Group Championships are scheduled 11 to 20 June 2008 in Danang , Vietnam . The event will be conducted in the U-8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18 Age-Groups for Girls and Open. In addition, Seniors (aged 50 and above) will be held. Three tournaments will be held in standard chess, rapid and blitz. At stake are individual medals and team medals based on the total score of the top three players of a country.

Clash of Philippines ' best chess players Battle of GMs' set April 19-30

from Journal

AS part of its long-term programs to further promote chess, the National Chess Federation of t he Philippines (NCFP) will organize a tough, double-round tournament featuring the country’s top players on April 19-30.

Dubbed as “Battle of GMs”, the tournament will be participated in by GMs Rogelio Antonio Jr., Eugene Torre, Wesley So and Jayson Gonzales and Singapore-based GMs Buenaventura “Bong” Villamayor and Nelson Mariano.

The GMs will be pitted against some of the country’s rising players, according to NCFP president Prospero “Butch” Pichay.

“The GM tournament will give our top players the opportunity to further hone their skills by playing against each other,” said Pichay.

IMs John Paul Gomez and Julio Catalino Sadorra, who are fresh from their participation in the Aeroflot Open International Open chess championship in Moscow , Russia are expected to compete.

IM Roland Salvador, who earned two GM norms while campaigning in tough tournaments in Italy , is also being invited to participate.

At stake in the prestigious competition are trophies and cash prizes, with the champion pocketing the lion’s share of P200,000.

The runner-up and the third placer will receive P150,000 and P100,000, respectively.

Other guaranteed cash prizes are P75,000 for the fourth placer, P50,000 to the fifth placer, and P30, 000 to the sixth to eighth placers.

Lots of Filipino players are also slated to play in Sydney International Open, led by IM John Paul Gomez and FM Jesse Noel Sales.

And on to local tourneys:

2008 National Age-Group Chess Championships (Apr. 1-6)

from People's Tonight

The National Age-Group chess championships will be held as scheduled on April 1-6.

This was announced by NCFP executive and events director Willie Abalos, who said the tournament will be divided into six categories: Under-18, Under-16, Under-14, Under-12, Under-10 and Under-8.

The winners in all six categories will earn the right to represent the country in the ASEAN Age-Group Championships scheduled June 11-20 in Denang , Vietnam and the World Youth set Oct.19-31 in Vang Tau, Vietnam .

Trophies and cash prizes are also at stake in the tournament, with the champion getting P5,000 the second placer P3,000 and the third placer P2,000.

The tournament will be held at the Kaban ng Hiyas Bldg. in Mandaluyong City .

For details, call NCFP headquarters located at Room 204 Administration Building, Rizal Memorial Complex, Philippine Sports Commission, Vito Cruz St. , Malate, Manila with tel. 02-381-7224, 02-536-8507, and cell 0929-2390644, 0905-3269576 and 0927-7209260.

2008 National Juniors Chess Championships (Apr. 9-14)

from People's Tonight

The NCFP will stage the 2008 National Juniors Chess Championships right after the Age-Group chess championships on April 9-14.

Open to players 20 years old and below, the six day tournament will be held to determine the country’s entry to the 2008 World Juniors Chess Championship scheduled in Antalya , Turkey on Aug. 2-16.

World’s youngest Grandmaster Wesley So is the defending champion of the said national annual tournament. Last year, Wesley also made history by becoming the youngest Filipino national junior chess champion at the age of 13.

The cash prizes are:

Boys -- Champion P15,000; Runner-up P10,000, and third placer P7,000.

Girls -- Champion P10,000; Runner-up P8,000, and third placer P6,000.

The tournament will be held at the Kaban ng Hiyas Bldg. in Mandaluyong City .

For details, call NCFP headquarters located at Room 204 Administration Building, Rizal Memorial Complex, Philippine Sports Commission, Vito Cruz St. , Malate, Manila with tel. 02-381-7224, 02-536-8507, and cell 0929-2390644, 0905-3269576 and 0927-7209260.

PAMPANGA OPEN 2000 CHESS TOURNAMENT (Mar. 8 )

SIGN UP FOR PAMPANGA OPEN 2000 CHESS GETS GOING

by Marlon Bernardino

REGISTRATION for the much awaited Pampanga Open 2000 Chess Tournament is now in full swing at the Robinson's Plaza in Balibago, Angeles City , Pampanga.

The champion will get the lion's share of P6,000, the runner-up P4,000, the third placer P2,000, fourth placer P1,000 and fifth placer P800 with all trophies.

Sixth place receives P700 plus medals while 7th to 10th placers gets P500 each plus medals.

Other prizes that includes top elementary, high school, college, lady and 55-years-old and above likewise receive P500 each plus medals.

A joint project of J.J.Memorial Chess Club and Good Move Chess Club, open to all player with a local rating 2000 below which kick off on March 8, 2008, Saturday.

The registration fee is P300 for non-Pampanga players while P200 for Pampanga players.

For inquiries, call or text Vic Noel Salomia at mobile no. 0916-437-6102 and Andy Dizon at 0917-354-1086 for complete details.


Dr. Jose P. Leviste Sr. Swiss Chess Tournament (March 2008)

by International Master Indefonso Datu

The whole tournament is divided into three divisions: Grade School, High School, and College Division. Each division will employ the nine-round Swiss System tournament play with an active time control of 25 minutes per player. FIDE Laws of Chess will be employed by the tournament.

The tourney is in honor of the memory of Ateneo alumnus Dr. Jose P. Leviste Sr. (HS ’33, AA ’35), himself a good chess player. For both College and High School Divisions, P5,000.00 and a trophy will go to the top placer. The 2nd runner ups will receive P3,000.00 plus trophy; the third placers will receive P2,000.00 plus trophy. The 4th and 5th place overall finishers will receive P1,000.00 and a gold medal and P500.00 and a silver medal respectively. For the Grade School Division, P3,000.00 and a trophy will go to the top placer. The 2nd runner ups will receive P2,000.00 plus trophy; the third placer will receive P1,000.00 plus trophy. The 4th and 5th place overall finishers will receive P700.00 and a gold medal and P400.00 and a silver medal respectively.

Registration begins on March 1, 2008. The registration fee is slated at P 280.00 but individuals who register on or before March 28, 2008 need only pay P250.00 as an early bird reward. Interested parties may register at the Ateneo University Athletics Office, 2nd floor of the Blue Eagle Gym.

Students must bring their current school IDs upon registration. For inquiries you may call 4266001 loc. 4193 or 4265955 and look for Mr. Rodel Cubos or Ms. Marlyn Franco or you can text (0922) 6920503. Inquiries shall be entertained beginning March 1, 2008.

Thanks much John!