By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
IT is generally accepted that the winner of the Morelia-Linares tournament is the unofficial champion of the year. It is usually played in February with the first half in Morelia, Mexico and the second half in Linares, Spain.
This year’s edition will start Feb. 17-25 in Morelia and the concluding half in Linares on March 2-10. It is sometimes described as the Wimbledon of chess and is one of the strongest tournaments of the year, together with Wijk Aan Zee, which was held last month, the M-Tel Masters in Sofia, and the Dortmund Invitational in Germany.
Arroyo Watch: Sun.Star blog on President Arroyo
In 1998, Linares was changed from a single round-robin tournament to a seven player double round robin event (meaning that each participant plays every other participant twice, once with each color).
Luis Rentero, the sponsor of the tournament, is notorious for being a strong opponent of short draws in chess, to the point that in 1991 he offered cash bonuses for playing longer games.
Previous winners of the tournament are 2000 Vladimir Kramnik and Garry Kasparov, 2001 Garry Kasparov, 2002 Garry Kasparov, 2003 Péter Lékó (joint winner with Vladimir Kramnik; but had a better tiebreak score), 2004 Vladimir Kramnik, 2005 Garry Kasparov (with the same score as Veselin Topalov; won on tiebreak because of more wins with black) and 2006 Levon Aronian .
The participants for this year’s edition are Veselin Topalov, Viswanathan Anand, Peter Leko, Peter Svidler, Levon Aronian, Teimour Radjabov, Magnus Carlsen and Alexander Morozevich. No explanation is given why World Champion Vladimir Kramnik was not invited.
Veselin Topalov, 31, is a Bulgarian grandmaster and former World Champion and currently World no. 1. He won the 2005 Chess Oscar and had the second highest Elo rating of all time at 2813. He played Classical Champion Kramnik in a unification match just recently and the score was tied after 12 rounds. He lost in the tiebreak games. His current rating is 2783.
Viswanathan Anand, 37, is from India and also a former Fide champion. In the latest Fide Ratings, his Elo is 2779, just 4 points behind the no. 1 Topalov. Anand is one of only four players in history to break the 2800 mark on the Fide rating list and he has been among the top three ranked players in classical time control chess in the world continuously since 1997.
Peter Leko, 27, is a Yugoslav, although born in Hungary. His latest rating is 2749, making him no. 6 in the world. He is an extremely solid player and very difficult to defeat.
Peter Svidler is a Russian grandmaster with an Elo Rating of 2728, making him no. 12 in the world. He is a four-time Russian Champion—1994, 1995, 1997 and 2003.
Levon Aronian is from Armenia and is no. 7 in the world with a rating of 2744. An early sign of his playing ability is shown by winning the world under 12 championship in 1994 and the world Juniors in 2002. He won the Morelia/Linares chess tournament last year.
Magnus Carlsen is only 15 years old and considered by almost everybody to be a potential world champion. His major wins were at Wijk Aan Zee in 2004, C group, at the age of 13, and group B a year later at 14.
Alexander Morozevich is currently no.8 in the world with an Elo rating of 2741. In December 2006 he won the Ciudad de Pamplona with an amazing performance rating of 2951.
Cepca news. The February tournament of the club will be this Sunday at Bibo`s starting at 1p.m. There will be two sections class A and class B/C. Format is 5 rounds Swiss with handicaps.
Sponsor of the tournament is Prime Parts fabricators and Sales Inc. in Talisay City.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Friday, February 9, 2007
Campo: The Grand Old Man of Chess
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
IT has been reported all over the chess world and major newspapers that Florencio Basa Campomanes, also known as, “Campo,” the honorary president of Fide, has met a major car accident in Istanbul ,Turkey last Feb. 2 and that he underwent a 7 1/2 hour operation as he suffered multiple fractures to the bones in his legs, hands and neck.
Apparently, he was in Antalya, Turkey to attend the presidential board meeting and was on the way to the airport when his car overturned and plunged over the side of the road. It seemed that the driver, who escaped without a major injury, lost control when an animal suddenly crossed the road.
As I write this article, Campo is now out of danger and even challenged the hospital staff to play chess.
The last time I met Campo was during the holidays when he visited me at Handuraw Café in Mabolo to inform me that he was transferring to Baguio from Cebu where he resided for sometime at the Cebu Business Park. He gave me some pointers on how to take care of my health (at 80, he seemed fit and his handshake was still firm) and wished our chess club and “Chessmoso” the best of luck.
Early in the 70s while I was still working with an oil company, a few chess players and I visited him on his TV show in Manila and one of his come-ons was to present a chess problem and ask his guests to solve it. He would give as prize a kamagong chess set, which incidentally I won.
Prior to the Chess Olympiad in Manila in 1992, the Cebu Chess Federation organized a Grandmasters tournament at the then Magellan Hotel with the assistance of Campo that turned out to be the most prestigious chess event so far in Cebu. During the tournament, we would play poker at the hotel in the evenings.
Campo just recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Philippine Sportswriters Association for his involvement and contributions to the development of chess for more than half a century.
He was born on Feb. 22 in Manila and had excellent academic credentials. He graduated cum laude, from the University of the Philippines in 1948 with a BA degree, was a Fullbright scholar, and finished MA at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island in 1951. He pursued Doctoral studies in Georgetown University, Washington DC from 1949-1952.
He was a lecturer in political science in UP from 1954-56, chess columnist of the Manila Times from 1954-61, and TV producer-host of Channel 4 from 1973-1952.
Aside from being an excellent organizer, he was a passable chess player, being National Champion in 1956 and 1960, and played in several Olympiads, namely Moscow 1956, Munich 1958, Leipzeg 1960, Varna 1962, and Havana 1966.
He started to get involved in Fide when he became permanent delegate in 1956, Asian Zone president in 1960-64, Deputy President for Asia from 1974- 82 and finally Fide President in 1982 and reelected for two more four-year terms. He is now Fide honorary president since 1996.
Under his term, Olympiads were held in Greece, Dubai, Novi Sad, and Moscow and finally in Manila in 1992, aside from six Men’s World Championships.
The World Championship between Karpov and Korchnoi was held in Baguio in 1978. The Interzonals in 1976 and 1989 and World Juniors Champioships in 1974 and 1987 were also held in Manila.
Finally, he raised Fide membership by about 50 plus federations.
Cepca news. The February edition of our club`s Kiddies and Junior tournaments was held at Bibo`s last Sunday and the Kiddies winners were champion-Godrey Villamor, 2nd-Marie Cecille Lumapac,3rd-Kyle Sevillano, 4th-Jan Tilos and 5th-Patrick Osorno.
In the Juniors Division the champion was Yves Fiel, 2nd-Yuri Cauba and 3rd-Christian Lumapac.
It was a thematic tournament with the following moves per round . 1st-Reti, Nf3-Nf6; 2nd-Queen`s pawn ,d4-d5 3rd- Caro kahn, e4-c6 4th-English,c4-e5 5th-Alekhine, e4-Nf6 6th- modern. E4-g6 and 7th-Rat`s, d3-d5.
(frankpestaño@yahoo.com)
Chessmoso
IT has been reported all over the chess world and major newspapers that Florencio Basa Campomanes, also known as, “Campo,” the honorary president of Fide, has met a major car accident in Istanbul ,Turkey last Feb. 2 and that he underwent a 7 1/2 hour operation as he suffered multiple fractures to the bones in his legs, hands and neck.
Apparently, he was in Antalya, Turkey to attend the presidential board meeting and was on the way to the airport when his car overturned and plunged over the side of the road. It seemed that the driver, who escaped without a major injury, lost control when an animal suddenly crossed the road.
As I write this article, Campo is now out of danger and even challenged the hospital staff to play chess.
The last time I met Campo was during the holidays when he visited me at Handuraw Café in Mabolo to inform me that he was transferring to Baguio from Cebu where he resided for sometime at the Cebu Business Park. He gave me some pointers on how to take care of my health (at 80, he seemed fit and his handshake was still firm) and wished our chess club and “Chessmoso” the best of luck.
Early in the 70s while I was still working with an oil company, a few chess players and I visited him on his TV show in Manila and one of his come-ons was to present a chess problem and ask his guests to solve it. He would give as prize a kamagong chess set, which incidentally I won.
Prior to the Chess Olympiad in Manila in 1992, the Cebu Chess Federation organized a Grandmasters tournament at the then Magellan Hotel with the assistance of Campo that turned out to be the most prestigious chess event so far in Cebu. During the tournament, we would play poker at the hotel in the evenings.
Campo just recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Philippine Sportswriters Association for his involvement and contributions to the development of chess for more than half a century.
He was born on Feb. 22 in Manila and had excellent academic credentials. He graduated cum laude, from the University of the Philippines in 1948 with a BA degree, was a Fullbright scholar, and finished MA at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island in 1951. He pursued Doctoral studies in Georgetown University, Washington DC from 1949-1952.
He was a lecturer in political science in UP from 1954-56, chess columnist of the Manila Times from 1954-61, and TV producer-host of Channel 4 from 1973-1952.
Aside from being an excellent organizer, he was a passable chess player, being National Champion in 1956 and 1960, and played in several Olympiads, namely Moscow 1956, Munich 1958, Leipzeg 1960, Varna 1962, and Havana 1966.
He started to get involved in Fide when he became permanent delegate in 1956, Asian Zone president in 1960-64, Deputy President for Asia from 1974- 82 and finally Fide President in 1982 and reelected for two more four-year terms. He is now Fide honorary president since 1996.
Under his term, Olympiads were held in Greece, Dubai, Novi Sad, and Moscow and finally in Manila in 1992, aside from six Men’s World Championships.
The World Championship between Karpov and Korchnoi was held in Baguio in 1978. The Interzonals in 1976 and 1989 and World Juniors Champioships in 1974 and 1987 were also held in Manila.
Finally, he raised Fide membership by about 50 plus federations.
Cepca news. The February edition of our club`s Kiddies and Junior tournaments was held at Bibo`s last Sunday and the Kiddies winners were champion-Godrey Villamor, 2nd-Marie Cecille Lumapac,3rd-Kyle Sevillano, 4th-Jan Tilos and 5th-Patrick Osorno.
In the Juniors Division the champion was Yves Fiel, 2nd-Yuri Cauba and 3rd-Christian Lumapac.
It was a thematic tournament with the following moves per round . 1st-Reti, Nf3-Nf6; 2nd-Queen`s pawn ,d4-d5 3rd- Caro kahn, e4-c6 4th-English,c4-e5 5th-Alekhine, e4-Nf6 6th- modern. E4-g6 and 7th-Rat`s, d3-d5.
(frankpestaño@yahoo.com)
Friday, February 2, 2007
National Chess Federation of the Philippines
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
THE National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) is the governing body of chess in the country and is in turn affiliated with the World Chess Federation(fide).
It was born amid much sound and fury in 2000 with a lot of pride lost and prestige broken when it replaced the Philippine Chess Federation in representing the country in the 34th Olympiad in Istanbul, Turkey.
The highlights of the federation and a brief history of chess in the country are listed as well as its present officers in its website ncfphilippines.org:
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* 1947 - 1st National Championship won by Horacio Tagle.
* 1956 - Philippine Chess Federation recognized by Fide
* 1957 - Rodolfo Tan Cardoso awarded International Master - the first in Asia. Cardoso became World Junior Champion
* 1966-1970 - Florencio Campomanes elected Zone President
* 1974 - 1982 - Campomanes appointed Fide Deputy President for Asia
* 1974 - Eugene Torre at 22years old became Asia's first Grandmaster (GM)
* 1976 - IM Rosendo Balinas, Jr. won in USSR, the 1st foreigner to do so and becomes GM
* 1978 - World Championship Match bet Karpov and Korchnoi in Baguio City
* 1981 - Asean Games held in Manila
* 1982 - Florencio Campomanes elected Fide President
* 1992 - Chess Olympiad held in Manila (Organized by Florencio Campomanes)
* Aug 27, 2000 - National Chess Federation of the Philippines was recognized by Fide
* 2004 - IM Mark Paragua became the 6th and youngest Filipino GM (at age 20)
* 2005 - 24th Asean Games in Manila
* 2005 - 3rd Asean Paragames in Manila
* 2006 - 1st President Arroyo International Open
Its officers are headed by Hon. Matias Defensor as chairman and Hon. Prospero Pichay as president. Management of the Federation is handled by Willie A. Abalos. Its motto is “Make the right move, play chess.”
From all indications, we might have the best president the federation ever had. Rep. Pichay is a dynamic president and if ever he will run for senator he can surely count on chess players all over the archipelago to support him.
Wijk Aan Zee. Aronian, Topalov and Radjabov are co-winners in the biggest tournament of the year, while World champion Vladimir Kramnik was only half a point behind with a win over Loek Van Wely in the last round. Anand could only manage 7.5 pts as he lost to both Kramnik and Topalov.
Aronian and Kramnik never lost a game, while Topalov went down against Peter Svidler in the 11th despite being initially ahead in position.
Here are the final standings in group A after 13 rounds: 1. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2744 8.5; 2. Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2783 8.5; 3. Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2729 8.5; 4. Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2766 8.0; 5. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2779 7.5; 6. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2728 7.0; 7. Navara, David g CZE 2719 6.5; 8. Karjakin, Sergey g UKR 2678 6.5; 9. Ponomariov, Ruslan g UKR 2723 6.0; 10. Motylev, Alexander g RUS 2647 5.0; 11. Tiviakov, Sergei g NED 2667 5.0; 12. Van Wely, Loek g NED 2683 5.0; 13. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2690 4.5; 14. Shirov, Alexei g ESP 2715 4.5.
Group B winner was Pavel Eljanov of Ukraine and group C was snared by Michal Krasenkow of Poland. Both sections were also 14-players group and round robin formats.
Cepca news. Tony Cabibil dominated the Class A January tournament at Bibo`s last Tuesday and 2nd placer was Allan Salientes. In group B and C Percival Fiel won via tiebreak over Nick Cuizon as 3rd, while 5th went to Mat Matuco, Mandy Baria and Maggi Dionson, respectively.
Chessmoso
THE National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) is the governing body of chess in the country and is in turn affiliated with the World Chess Federation(fide).
It was born amid much sound and fury in 2000 with a lot of pride lost and prestige broken when it replaced the Philippine Chess Federation in representing the country in the 34th Olympiad in Istanbul, Turkey.
The highlights of the federation and a brief history of chess in the country are listed as well as its present officers in its website ncfphilippines.org:
Sun.Star Network Online's Sinulog Festival Coverage
Post your Sinulog greetings
* 1947 - 1st National Championship won by Horacio Tagle.
* 1956 - Philippine Chess Federation recognized by Fide
* 1957 - Rodolfo Tan Cardoso awarded International Master - the first in Asia. Cardoso became World Junior Champion
* 1966-1970 - Florencio Campomanes elected Zone President
* 1974 - 1982 - Campomanes appointed Fide Deputy President for Asia
* 1974 - Eugene Torre at 22years old became Asia's first Grandmaster (GM)
* 1976 - IM Rosendo Balinas, Jr. won in USSR, the 1st foreigner to do so and becomes GM
* 1978 - World Championship Match bet Karpov and Korchnoi in Baguio City
* 1981 - Asean Games held in Manila
* 1982 - Florencio Campomanes elected Fide President
* 1992 - Chess Olympiad held in Manila (Organized by Florencio Campomanes)
* Aug 27, 2000 - National Chess Federation of the Philippines was recognized by Fide
* 2004 - IM Mark Paragua became the 6th and youngest Filipino GM (at age 20)
* 2005 - 24th Asean Games in Manila
* 2005 - 3rd Asean Paragames in Manila
* 2006 - 1st President Arroyo International Open
Its officers are headed by Hon. Matias Defensor as chairman and Hon. Prospero Pichay as president. Management of the Federation is handled by Willie A. Abalos. Its motto is “Make the right move, play chess.”
From all indications, we might have the best president the federation ever had. Rep. Pichay is a dynamic president and if ever he will run for senator he can surely count on chess players all over the archipelago to support him.
Wijk Aan Zee. Aronian, Topalov and Radjabov are co-winners in the biggest tournament of the year, while World champion Vladimir Kramnik was only half a point behind with a win over Loek Van Wely in the last round. Anand could only manage 7.5 pts as he lost to both Kramnik and Topalov.
Aronian and Kramnik never lost a game, while Topalov went down against Peter Svidler in the 11th despite being initially ahead in position.
Here are the final standings in group A after 13 rounds: 1. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2744 8.5; 2. Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2783 8.5; 3. Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2729 8.5; 4. Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2766 8.0; 5. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2779 7.5; 6. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2728 7.0; 7. Navara, David g CZE 2719 6.5; 8. Karjakin, Sergey g UKR 2678 6.5; 9. Ponomariov, Ruslan g UKR 2723 6.0; 10. Motylev, Alexander g RUS 2647 5.0; 11. Tiviakov, Sergei g NED 2667 5.0; 12. Van Wely, Loek g NED 2683 5.0; 13. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2690 4.5; 14. Shirov, Alexei g ESP 2715 4.5.
Group B winner was Pavel Eljanov of Ukraine and group C was snared by Michal Krasenkow of Poland. Both sections were also 14-players group and round robin formats.
Cepca news. Tony Cabibil dominated the Class A January tournament at Bibo`s last Tuesday and 2nd placer was Allan Salientes. In group B and C Percival Fiel won via tiebreak over Nick Cuizon as 3rd, while 5th went to Mat Matuco, Mandy Baria and Maggi Dionson, respectively.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Senador, Le Quang Liem win; Topalov leads
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
A LOT of people were surprised when IM Manny Senador won the just concluded Sinulog Open chess tournament sponsored by Rep. Prospero Pichay of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and Bogie Lim of Rose Pharmacy. I was not though, as I am familiar with his chess playing ability.
Manny is a three-time Olympian having played for the country in 1992, 1996 and 2004. He won the La Union Open in 2002 and was a member of the National Inter-cities team champion in 2006 and was the top scorer in the 2005 Bangkok Blitz International tournament. He is a pure bisaya , born in Jaro, Iloilo and a Philippine Air Force chess team member.
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He is also a regular guy, as after the tournament he treated close friends to a generous supply of beer and pulutan at Bibo`s and Handuraw Café in Mabolo.
In the tournament, Manny scored 7.5 points with 6 wins and 3 draws. Six players tied for second with 7 points each namely Chito Garma (43.2 tiebreaks points),Efren Bagasmabad (42.7),Barlo Nadera (42.4), Rhobel Legaspi (41.9), Richard Bitoon (40.8) and Anyhony Makiniano (40.7).
Senador won P50,000, a significant amount by local standards. Total prize money awarded in this tournament was a whooping P200,000. Since Rep. Pichay took over as president of the NCFP, great things have been happening to chess.
Vietnam. It is now official—Vietnam is superior to the Philippines in the Asean region as far as chess is concerned and I may add in economic and political stability.
The Fide sanctioned Asian Zone 3.3 championship just finished in Vietnam last week and the two qualifiers to the world knockout championship are Le Quang Liem and Nguyen Ngoc Truongson ,both of Vitnam.
GM Nelson Mariano almost made it but was held to a draw by FM Cegmed Batchuluun of Mongolia in the final round.
There was actually a four-man tie after the regular games but Mariano lost to GM Troungson in the play-offs after drawing both his games to GMs Dao Thien Hai and Nguyen Anh Dung, Le, 15, won the tournament with 6 wins and 3 draws. The other qualifier Truongson is also only 16 yrs old. Vietnam’s leading players have a long way to go.
The other Filipinos who played in this important tournament were Eugene Torre (4.5), Mark Paragua (5), Oliver Dimakiling (5), Darwin Laylo (5), Ronald Dableo (5).
Three other pinoys namely Wesley So, Rogelio Antonio and Hamed Nouri all settled for draws in their final game and missed the play-offs by half a point. All 3 scored 5.5 pts each.
Wijk Aan Zee. As expected, Topalov and Kramnik are slowly showing their class in the biggest tournament of the year, Corus 2007, after being dominated in the early rounds by the young lion, Teimour Radjabov. Anand has been a disappointment though, having lost to both Topalov and Kramnik.
Topalov, Kramnik and Aronian are still unbeaten while Shirov and Carlsen will surely lose a lot of ELO points here due to their dismal performance so far.
Standing after 9 rounds: 1. Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2783 6.5; 2. Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2729 6.0; 3. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2744 5.5; 4. Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2766 5.5; 5. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2728 5.5; 6. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2779 5.0; 7. Karjakin, Sergey g UKR 2678 5.0; 8. Ponomariov, Ruslan g UKR 2723 4.5; 9. Navara, David g CZE 2719 4.0; 10. Motylev, Alexander g RUS 2647 3.5; 11. Tiviakov, Sergei g NED 2667 3.5; 12. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2690 3.0; 13. Van Wely, Loek g NED 2683 3.0; 14. Shirov, Alexei g ESP 2715 2.5.
There are still 4 rounds left to play.
Cepca news. The January tournament of the club will be this coming Tuesday, the 30th, at the Bibo Chess club starting at 6 p.m.
Chessmoso
A LOT of people were surprised when IM Manny Senador won the just concluded Sinulog Open chess tournament sponsored by Rep. Prospero Pichay of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and Bogie Lim of Rose Pharmacy. I was not though, as I am familiar with his chess playing ability.
Manny is a three-time Olympian having played for the country in 1992, 1996 and 2004. He won the La Union Open in 2002 and was a member of the National Inter-cities team champion in 2006 and was the top scorer in the 2005 Bangkok Blitz International tournament. He is a pure bisaya , born in Jaro, Iloilo and a Philippine Air Force chess team member.
Sun.Star Network Online's Sinulog Festival Coverage
Post your Sinulog greetings
He is also a regular guy, as after the tournament he treated close friends to a generous supply of beer and pulutan at Bibo`s and Handuraw Café in Mabolo.
In the tournament, Manny scored 7.5 points with 6 wins and 3 draws. Six players tied for second with 7 points each namely Chito Garma (43.2 tiebreaks points),Efren Bagasmabad (42.7),Barlo Nadera (42.4), Rhobel Legaspi (41.9), Richard Bitoon (40.8) and Anyhony Makiniano (40.7).
Senador won P50,000, a significant amount by local standards. Total prize money awarded in this tournament was a whooping P200,000. Since Rep. Pichay took over as president of the NCFP, great things have been happening to chess.
Vietnam. It is now official—Vietnam is superior to the Philippines in the Asean region as far as chess is concerned and I may add in economic and political stability.
The Fide sanctioned Asian Zone 3.3 championship just finished in Vietnam last week and the two qualifiers to the world knockout championship are Le Quang Liem and Nguyen Ngoc Truongson ,both of Vitnam.
GM Nelson Mariano almost made it but was held to a draw by FM Cegmed Batchuluun of Mongolia in the final round.
There was actually a four-man tie after the regular games but Mariano lost to GM Troungson in the play-offs after drawing both his games to GMs Dao Thien Hai and Nguyen Anh Dung, Le, 15, won the tournament with 6 wins and 3 draws. The other qualifier Truongson is also only 16 yrs old. Vietnam’s leading players have a long way to go.
The other Filipinos who played in this important tournament were Eugene Torre (4.5), Mark Paragua (5), Oliver Dimakiling (5), Darwin Laylo (5), Ronald Dableo (5).
Three other pinoys namely Wesley So, Rogelio Antonio and Hamed Nouri all settled for draws in their final game and missed the play-offs by half a point. All 3 scored 5.5 pts each.
Wijk Aan Zee. As expected, Topalov and Kramnik are slowly showing their class in the biggest tournament of the year, Corus 2007, after being dominated in the early rounds by the young lion, Teimour Radjabov. Anand has been a disappointment though, having lost to both Topalov and Kramnik.
Topalov, Kramnik and Aronian are still unbeaten while Shirov and Carlsen will surely lose a lot of ELO points here due to their dismal performance so far.
Standing after 9 rounds: 1. Topalov, Veselin g BUL 2783 6.5; 2. Radjabov, Teimour g AZE 2729 6.0; 3. Aronian, Levon g ARM 2744 5.5; 4. Kramnik, Vladimir g RUS 2766 5.5; 5. Svidler, Peter g RUS 2728 5.5; 6. Anand, Viswanathan g IND 2779 5.0; 7. Karjakin, Sergey g UKR 2678 5.0; 8. Ponomariov, Ruslan g UKR 2723 4.5; 9. Navara, David g CZE 2719 4.0; 10. Motylev, Alexander g RUS 2647 3.5; 11. Tiviakov, Sergei g NED 2667 3.5; 12. Carlsen, Magnus g NOR 2690 3.0; 13. Van Wely, Loek g NED 2683 3.0; 14. Shirov, Alexei g ESP 2715 2.5.
There are still 4 rounds left to play.
Cepca news. The January tournament of the club will be this coming Tuesday, the 30th, at the Bibo Chess club starting at 6 p.m.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Bobby Fischer’s love life
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
AT the tender age of 5, Bobby fischer, considered the greatest and most gifted chess player of all time, received as his birthday gift a $5 chess set from his sister Joan. The game completely enamored him that he never had a normal life ever and he never “grew up.
“He never developed the social skills necessary to deal with society in general and lived a life of his own.
It is said that Bobby wouldn’t go out with women who knew who he was but was too shy to ask the ones who didn’t.
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During grade school in Brooklyn, he had an equally famous classmate, Barbra Streisand, who some people believed was a sort of puppy love as they were constantly exchanging gifts especially “Mad” comics. Later in life, he referred to her as his “mousy looking classmate” when interviewed over Philippine radio.
As far as what is known, Bobby had a relationship with four women—Justine Ong, Miyoko Watai, Petra Dautov and Zita Raiczany.
Zita was a 17-year-old Hungarian junior master when she had a relationship with Bobby. It is said that she was primarily responsible for Bobby`s decision to play chess again in 1992 after an absence of 20 years. The 2nd Fischer-Spassky match took place in Montenegro, a part of Yugoslavia, despite United Nations sanctions against that country over its civil war in Bosnia. Bobby was guaranteed $5million plus TV revenues, which has since then made his life tolerable. However, he is wanted in the States for tax evasion and other charges.
Incidentally, his second adviser on this match was Eugene Torre and research was done by a Cebuano friend, Eric Gloria.
Prior to Zita, Petra Dautov, a German, claims that she had a relationship with Bobby in the eighties and has a written a memoir of her life with him. I haven’t read this memoir but Bobby has denied some parts of it.
In May 2000 Bobby, then 57 years old, arrived in the Philippines and enlisted a few close friends, as he had one purpose in mind – he wanted to have a child. He had a long-felt wish to “perpetuate his genes.’
According to reports posted on the Internet, a Filipino friend of Bobby set him up in a cottage in Baguio City, and presented him with a “series of willing gene-carriers, from whom Bobby chose” a 22 year old woman. A contract was signed, “and the woman received the genes, and nine months later she gave birth to a girl, who now grows up in Davao City.”
Whether this is true or not, as the woman has never come out in public as the mother of Fischer’s child, only time will tell. By now, the child should be six years old. There is even a picture of the woman on the Internet and she is very pretty and described as a model.
It is said that when Bobby was arrested in Tokyo (his passport was cancelled by the US government), he was on his way to the Philippines to visit his child whom he gives regular financial report.
When Bobby was arrested in Japan, one of his strategies was to claim that he was married to a Japanese, Miyoko Watai, to escape extradition to the USA over unspecified charges. Miyoko Watai admitted “that he might be using her as "a pawn" in an effort to counter the Japanese authorities' opening move.”
"I could be a sacrifice pawn," conceded Ms. Watai, 59, the acting president of the Japan Chess Association. "But in chess there is such a thing as pawn promotion, where a pawn can become a queen," said Ms. Watai, four times women's chess champion in Japan. Breaking into a smile, she vowed: "Bobby-san is my king, and I will become his queen. We want to win the game by joining hands."
Bobby is now living in Iceland after he was given full citizenship.
Chessmoso
AT the tender age of 5, Bobby fischer, considered the greatest and most gifted chess player of all time, received as his birthday gift a $5 chess set from his sister Joan. The game completely enamored him that he never had a normal life ever and he never “grew up.
“He never developed the social skills necessary to deal with society in general and lived a life of his own.
It is said that Bobby wouldn’t go out with women who knew who he was but was too shy to ask the ones who didn’t.
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During grade school in Brooklyn, he had an equally famous classmate, Barbra Streisand, who some people believed was a sort of puppy love as they were constantly exchanging gifts especially “Mad” comics. Later in life, he referred to her as his “mousy looking classmate” when interviewed over Philippine radio.
As far as what is known, Bobby had a relationship with four women—Justine Ong, Miyoko Watai, Petra Dautov and Zita Raiczany.
Zita was a 17-year-old Hungarian junior master when she had a relationship with Bobby. It is said that she was primarily responsible for Bobby`s decision to play chess again in 1992 after an absence of 20 years. The 2nd Fischer-Spassky match took place in Montenegro, a part of Yugoslavia, despite United Nations sanctions against that country over its civil war in Bosnia. Bobby was guaranteed $5million plus TV revenues, which has since then made his life tolerable. However, he is wanted in the States for tax evasion and other charges.
Incidentally, his second adviser on this match was Eugene Torre and research was done by a Cebuano friend, Eric Gloria.
Prior to Zita, Petra Dautov, a German, claims that she had a relationship with Bobby in the eighties and has a written a memoir of her life with him. I haven’t read this memoir but Bobby has denied some parts of it.
In May 2000 Bobby, then 57 years old, arrived in the Philippines and enlisted a few close friends, as he had one purpose in mind – he wanted to have a child. He had a long-felt wish to “perpetuate his genes.’
According to reports posted on the Internet, a Filipino friend of Bobby set him up in a cottage in Baguio City, and presented him with a “series of willing gene-carriers, from whom Bobby chose” a 22 year old woman. A contract was signed, “and the woman received the genes, and nine months later she gave birth to a girl, who now grows up in Davao City.”
Whether this is true or not, as the woman has never come out in public as the mother of Fischer’s child, only time will tell. By now, the child should be six years old. There is even a picture of the woman on the Internet and she is very pretty and described as a model.
It is said that when Bobby was arrested in Tokyo (his passport was cancelled by the US government), he was on his way to the Philippines to visit his child whom he gives regular financial report.
When Bobby was arrested in Japan, one of his strategies was to claim that he was married to a Japanese, Miyoko Watai, to escape extradition to the USA over unspecified charges. Miyoko Watai admitted “that he might be using her as "a pawn" in an effort to counter the Japanese authorities' opening move.”
"I could be a sacrifice pawn," conceded Ms. Watai, 59, the acting president of the Japan Chess Association. "But in chess there is such a thing as pawn promotion, where a pawn can become a queen," said Ms. Watai, four times women's chess champion in Japan. Breaking into a smile, she vowed: "Bobby-san is my king, and I will become his queen. We want to win the game by joining hands."
Bobby is now living in Iceland after he was given full citizenship.
Friday, January 12, 2007
Corus 2007
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
THE Corus tournament is one of the oldest in the chess calendar and takes place every January in the town of Wijk Aan Zee in the Netherlands.
Formerly known as Hoogovens tournament, it started in 1938 and changed its name in 1999 after the Dutch steel and aluminium producer Koninklijke Hoogovens merged with British Steel to form the Corus Group in 0ctober 1999. It is now one of the biggest producers of steel in the World.
The tournament will start Jan. 13-28. There are three main sections and all are invitational and composed of 14 players each. The organizers have done a terrific job in inviting the players in group A. They are (country, rating and world ranking as of October 2006) : Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria, 2813, 1)Viswanathan Anand (India, 2779, 2) Vladimir Kramnik (Russia, 2750, 4) Peter Svidler (Russia, 2750, 5) Levon Aronian (Armenia, 2741, 6) Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan, 2729 11 7) David Navara (Czech Republic, 2725, 13) Alexey Shirov (Spain, 2720, 14) Ruslan Ponomariov (Ukraine, 2703, 20 ) Magnus Carlsen (Norway, 2698, 21) Serg Tiviakov (The Netherlands, 2680, 27) Loek van Wely (The Netherlands, 2676, 29) Sergey Karjakin (Ukraine, 2672, 35) and Alexander Motylev (Russia, 2662, 44).
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It’s been a while since we have seen Kramnik, Topalov and Anand competing head to head in the same event. Add to it the three brightest young talents Radjabov, Carlsen and Karjakin and you have the potential for a perfect and exceptional tournament.
World champion Kramnik is very good in one-on-one matches, as shown in his previous wins against Topalov, Kasparov and Leko but is inferior to Anand and Topalov in round robin matches because of his tendency to go for draws.
The problem with Topalov has been losing the unification match against Kramnik. That was a blow to his pride as he honestly believes that he is the better player and accused Kramnik of cheating in the match. Now, he is eager to prove that he is the best tournament player in the world.
Viswanathan Anand has won five titles of the Hoogovens/Corus chess tournament in its long history, while Max Euwe, Lajos Portisch and Viktor Korchnoi won Corus four times each
The problem with Anand is that he has not played a tournament under classical control for over half a year so this lack of practice could affect his play. In rapid control, he is the undisputed master.
Cepca news. The Cebu Executives and Professionals Association (Cepca) Inc. held its first tournament of the year featuring kiddies (13 below) and juniors (14-16) last Sunday, Jan. 7 at the Bibo chess club.
In the kiddies section the winner was Kyle Sevillano, 2nd place Marq Balbona, 3rd Felix Shaun Balbona, 4th John Francis Balbona and 5th placer was Argie Lumapac.
The Juniors section winner was Christian Lumapac, 2nd Yves Fiel and 3rd Jessa Balbona.
Membership in Cepca is now open to anybody either as regular or associate member. Tournaments now have four sections namely class A, B and C, Juniors and Kiddies. Visit us at Handuraw Café in Mabolo as we play every Tuesdays in the evening.
Welcome Asean delegates and foreign media. An Asean-accredited location, Kahayag Café (located along MJ Cuenco, Cebu City) offers an alternative form of soulful entertaintment with delectable comfort-Cebuano cuisine in a casual dining and homey-artsy atmosphere. Handuraw Café beside it gives you the best thin crust pizzas in town amid live performances of Cebuano local music bands (café only branch at 460 Gorordo Ave. Lahug).
Chessmoso
THE Corus tournament is one of the oldest in the chess calendar and takes place every January in the town of Wijk Aan Zee in the Netherlands.
Formerly known as Hoogovens tournament, it started in 1938 and changed its name in 1999 after the Dutch steel and aluminium producer Koninklijke Hoogovens merged with British Steel to form the Corus Group in 0ctober 1999. It is now one of the biggest producers of steel in the World.
The tournament will start Jan. 13-28. There are three main sections and all are invitational and composed of 14 players each. The organizers have done a terrific job in inviting the players in group A. They are (country, rating and world ranking as of October 2006) : Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria, 2813, 1)Viswanathan Anand (India, 2779, 2) Vladimir Kramnik (Russia, 2750, 4) Peter Svidler (Russia, 2750, 5) Levon Aronian (Armenia, 2741, 6) Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan, 2729 11 7) David Navara (Czech Republic, 2725, 13) Alexey Shirov (Spain, 2720, 14) Ruslan Ponomariov (Ukraine, 2703, 20 ) Magnus Carlsen (Norway, 2698, 21) Serg Tiviakov (The Netherlands, 2680, 27) Loek van Wely (The Netherlands, 2676, 29) Sergey Karjakin (Ukraine, 2672, 35) and Alexander Motylev (Russia, 2662, 44).
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It’s been a while since we have seen Kramnik, Topalov and Anand competing head to head in the same event. Add to it the three brightest young talents Radjabov, Carlsen and Karjakin and you have the potential for a perfect and exceptional tournament.
World champion Kramnik is very good in one-on-one matches, as shown in his previous wins against Topalov, Kasparov and Leko but is inferior to Anand and Topalov in round robin matches because of his tendency to go for draws.
The problem with Topalov has been losing the unification match against Kramnik. That was a blow to his pride as he honestly believes that he is the better player and accused Kramnik of cheating in the match. Now, he is eager to prove that he is the best tournament player in the world.
Viswanathan Anand has won five titles of the Hoogovens/Corus chess tournament in its long history, while Max Euwe, Lajos Portisch and Viktor Korchnoi won Corus four times each
The problem with Anand is that he has not played a tournament under classical control for over half a year so this lack of practice could affect his play. In rapid control, he is the undisputed master.
Cepca news. The Cebu Executives and Professionals Association (Cepca) Inc. held its first tournament of the year featuring kiddies (13 below) and juniors (14-16) last Sunday, Jan. 7 at the Bibo chess club.
In the kiddies section the winner was Kyle Sevillano, 2nd place Marq Balbona, 3rd Felix Shaun Balbona, 4th John Francis Balbona and 5th placer was Argie Lumapac.
The Juniors section winner was Christian Lumapac, 2nd Yves Fiel and 3rd Jessa Balbona.
Membership in Cepca is now open to anybody either as regular or associate member. Tournaments now have four sections namely class A, B and C, Juniors and Kiddies. Visit us at Handuraw Café in Mabolo as we play every Tuesdays in the evening.
Welcome Asean delegates and foreign media. An Asean-accredited location, Kahayag Café (located along MJ Cuenco, Cebu City) offers an alternative form of soulful entertaintment with delectable comfort-Cebuano cuisine in a casual dining and homey-artsy atmosphere. Handuraw Café beside it gives you the best thin crust pizzas in town amid live performances of Cebuano local music bands (café only branch at 460 Gorordo Ave. Lahug).
Friday, January 5, 2007
Topalov retains world No. 1 ranking
By Frank “Boy” Pestaño
Chessmoso
THE World Chess Federation has released the world’s top players and surprisingly the No.1 player is still Veselin Topalov despite losing 30 points in his unification match against Vladimir Kramnik and a low performance in the Essent Tournament.
Viswanathan Anand is now only four points behind, while Kramnik is just 17 points behind Topalov.
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Mamedyarov gained a massive 26 points to move to fourth, while Svidler lost 22 points to drop out of the Top 10. Judit Polgar is, as usual, the top female player and is No 13 in the world, increasing by 17 points. She is followed by Koneru Humpy of India, the Asian Games gold medal winner.
MEN’S Top 10. 1.) Veselin Topalov, 31, Bulgaria (2783) 2. Viswanathan Anand, 37, India (2779) 3. Vladimir Kramnik, 31, Russia (2766) 4. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, 21, Azerbaijan (2754) 5. Vassily Ivanchuk, 37 (2750) 6. Peter Leko, 27, Hungary 27 (2749) 7. Levon Aronian, 24, Armenia (2744) 8. Alexander Morozevich, 29 (Russia) 2741 9. Michael Adams, 35, England (2735) 10. Boris Gelfand, 38, Israel (2733).
Outside the Top 10, Ruslan Ponomariov, a former Fide Champion, rose to No. 14 from No. 20, having gained 20 points and Krishnan Sasikiran of India improved by 25 points to 2700 with his gold medal performance in the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.
WOMEN’S Top 10 1.) Judit Polgar, 30, Hungary (2727) 2.) Humpy Koneru 19, India, (2567) 3.) Pia Cramling, 43, Sweden (2530) 4.) Chen Zhu, 30, Qatar (2518) 5.) Yu Hua Xu, 30 China (2517) 6.) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 22, Russia (2515) 7.) Maia Chiburdanidze, 45, Georgia (2510) 8.) Yifan Hou Chn, 12, 2509 (2509) 9.) Nadezhda Kosintseva, 21, Russia (2496) 10.) Antoaneta Stefanova Bulgaria (2446).
JUNIORS’ Top 10 1.) Teimour Radjabov, 19, Azerbaijan (2729) 2.) Magnus Carlse, 16, Norway (2690) 3.) Sergey Karjakin, 16, (2678) 4.) Hikaru Naskamura, 19, USA (2651) 5.) Yue Wang, 19, China (2644) 6.) Radoslaw Wojttaszek, 19, Poland (2637) 7.) Evgeny Tomashevsky, 19, Russia (2624) 8.) Hao Wang, 17, China (2619) 10.) Csaba Balogh, 19, Hungary (2616).
GIRLS’ Top 10 1.) Humpy Koneru, 19, India (2567) 2.) Yifan Hou, 12, China (2509) 3.) Anna Muzychuk, 16, Slovakia (2475) 4.) Nana Dzagnidze, 19, Georgia (2463) 5.) Katyrena Lahno, 17, Ukraine (2456) 6.) Yang Shen, 17, China (2446) 7.) Elena Tairova, 15, Russia (2427) 8.) Dronavalli Harika, 15, India (2421) 9.) Salome Melia, 19, Georgia (2400) 10.) Bathuyag Mongontuul, 19, Mongolia (2397).
PHILIPPINES’ Top 10 1.) Mark Paragua, 22 (2573) 2.) Rogelio Antonio, 44 (2551) 3.) Eugenio Torre, 55 (2547) 4.) Rogelio Barcenilla, 2503 5.) Joseph Sanchez, 36 (2482) 6.) Oliver Dimakiling, 26, (2481) 7.) Darwin Laylo, 26 (2476) 8.) Jayson Gonzales (2458) 9.) Ildefonso Datu, 34 (2457) 10.) John Paul Gomez (2455).
TOP 10 COUNTRIES. The first number shows the average Elo rating of their top 10 players, the second number indicates their number of grandmasters, the third their total number of IMs and the fourth number shows the total number of titled players, men and women.1.) Russia (2713, 158, 437 1661) 2.) Ukraine (2661, 57, 170, 339) 3.) USA (2627, 60, 102, 463) 4.) Armenia (2627, 19, 21, 58) 5.) Hungary (2623, 37, 102, 345) 6.) Israel (2623, 33, 40, 132) 7.) China (2617, 19, 12, 82) 8.) France (2615, 29, 71, 254) 9.) Georgia (2609, 22, 28, 90) 10.) Poland (2608, 24, 79, 253) The Philippines is at 37th (2498, 5, 24, 43).
According to the newly elected president of the Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association Inc.(Cepca) Emmanuel “Mat” Matuco, this year is a “make or break” year for the club as there will be some fundamental changes in the membership structure and primary objectives.
The club is now open to everybody and members will be classified as regular or associate. In effect, the club will now be divided into three separate Groups—Class A,B and C and Kiddies and there will be three separate tournaments.
Those who belong in Class A, which will include all the best players, cannot join the B/ C tournaments and the kiddies will now have a separate tournament of their own.
Chessmoso
THE World Chess Federation has released the world’s top players and surprisingly the No.1 player is still Veselin Topalov despite losing 30 points in his unification match against Vladimir Kramnik and a low performance in the Essent Tournament.
Viswanathan Anand is now only four points behind, while Kramnik is just 17 points behind Topalov.
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Mamedyarov gained a massive 26 points to move to fourth, while Svidler lost 22 points to drop out of the Top 10. Judit Polgar is, as usual, the top female player and is No 13 in the world, increasing by 17 points. She is followed by Koneru Humpy of India, the Asian Games gold medal winner.
MEN’S Top 10. 1.) Veselin Topalov, 31, Bulgaria (2783) 2. Viswanathan Anand, 37, India (2779) 3. Vladimir Kramnik, 31, Russia (2766) 4. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, 21, Azerbaijan (2754) 5. Vassily Ivanchuk, 37 (2750) 6. Peter Leko, 27, Hungary 27 (2749) 7. Levon Aronian, 24, Armenia (2744) 8. Alexander Morozevich, 29 (Russia) 2741 9. Michael Adams, 35, England (2735) 10. Boris Gelfand, 38, Israel (2733).
Outside the Top 10, Ruslan Ponomariov, a former Fide Champion, rose to No. 14 from No. 20, having gained 20 points and Krishnan Sasikiran of India improved by 25 points to 2700 with his gold medal performance in the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.
WOMEN’S Top 10 1.) Judit Polgar, 30, Hungary (2727) 2.) Humpy Koneru 19, India, (2567) 3.) Pia Cramling, 43, Sweden (2530) 4.) Chen Zhu, 30, Qatar (2518) 5.) Yu Hua Xu, 30 China (2517) 6.) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 22, Russia (2515) 7.) Maia Chiburdanidze, 45, Georgia (2510) 8.) Yifan Hou Chn, 12, 2509 (2509) 9.) Nadezhda Kosintseva, 21, Russia (2496) 10.) Antoaneta Stefanova Bulgaria (2446).
JUNIORS’ Top 10 1.) Teimour Radjabov, 19, Azerbaijan (2729) 2.) Magnus Carlse, 16, Norway (2690) 3.) Sergey Karjakin, 16, (2678) 4.) Hikaru Naskamura, 19, USA (2651) 5.) Yue Wang, 19, China (2644) 6.) Radoslaw Wojttaszek, 19, Poland (2637) 7.) Evgeny Tomashevsky, 19, Russia (2624) 8.) Hao Wang, 17, China (2619) 10.) Csaba Balogh, 19, Hungary (2616).
GIRLS’ Top 10 1.) Humpy Koneru, 19, India (2567) 2.) Yifan Hou, 12, China (2509) 3.) Anna Muzychuk, 16, Slovakia (2475) 4.) Nana Dzagnidze, 19, Georgia (2463) 5.) Katyrena Lahno, 17, Ukraine (2456) 6.) Yang Shen, 17, China (2446) 7.) Elena Tairova, 15, Russia (2427) 8.) Dronavalli Harika, 15, India (2421) 9.) Salome Melia, 19, Georgia (2400) 10.) Bathuyag Mongontuul, 19, Mongolia (2397).
PHILIPPINES’ Top 10 1.) Mark Paragua, 22 (2573) 2.) Rogelio Antonio, 44 (2551) 3.) Eugenio Torre, 55 (2547) 4.) Rogelio Barcenilla, 2503 5.) Joseph Sanchez, 36 (2482) 6.) Oliver Dimakiling, 26, (2481) 7.) Darwin Laylo, 26 (2476) 8.) Jayson Gonzales (2458) 9.) Ildefonso Datu, 34 (2457) 10.) John Paul Gomez (2455).
TOP 10 COUNTRIES. The first number shows the average Elo rating of their top 10 players, the second number indicates their number of grandmasters, the third their total number of IMs and the fourth number shows the total number of titled players, men and women.1.) Russia (2713, 158, 437 1661) 2.) Ukraine (2661, 57, 170, 339) 3.) USA (2627, 60, 102, 463) 4.) Armenia (2627, 19, 21, 58) 5.) Hungary (2623, 37, 102, 345) 6.) Israel (2623, 33, 40, 132) 7.) China (2617, 19, 12, 82) 8.) France (2615, 29, 71, 254) 9.) Georgia (2609, 22, 28, 90) 10.) Poland (2608, 24, 79, 253) The Philippines is at 37th (2498, 5, 24, 43).
According to the newly elected president of the Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association Inc.(Cepca) Emmanuel “Mat” Matuco, this year is a “make or break” year for the club as there will be some fundamental changes in the membership structure and primary objectives.
The club is now open to everybody and members will be classified as regular or associate. In effect, the club will now be divided into three separate Groups—Class A,B and C and Kiddies and there will be three separate tournaments.
Those who belong in Class A, which will include all the best players, cannot join the B/ C tournaments and the kiddies will now have a separate tournament of their own.
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