Bersamina crowned Bayanihan chess king
By Marlon Bernardino
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 04 Mar 2022
Final Standings: (Rapid, 15 minutes for game with 10 seconds increment from move 1, Six Players Invitational, Double Round Robin Format)
International Master Paulo Bersamina (Champion, 7.0 points, P10,000)
Grandmaster Rogelio Antonio Jr. (2nd Place, 7.0 points, P5,000)
Grandmaster Darwin Laylo (3rd Place, 6.5 points, P3,000)
Inernational Master Ricardo de Guzman (4th Place, 3.5 points, P3,000)
International Master Angelo Young (5th Place, 3.5 points, P3,000)
Woman Grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna (6th Place, 2.5 points, P3,000)
MANILA---International Master Paulo Bersamina drew with Woman Grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna to crown himself the country’s chess king in the Bayanihan Chess Club Goodwill Match Rapid Invitational Chess Tournament at the Philippine Academy for Chess Excellence (PACE) in Mindanao Avenue, Project 6, Quezon City Thursday night.
Bersamina finished with a record of 7.0 points to win the double-round robin, 6-player FIDE rated tournament, organized by the Bayanihan Chess Club in close cooperation with the Philippine Academy for Chess Excellence (PACE) under the guidance of Grandmaster Jayson Gonzales and the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) headed by its' chairman/president Senior Deputy Speaker Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr.
Grandmaster Rogelio "Joey" Antonio Jr. won over International Master Angelo Young in the final round to clinch second place with similar seven points, while Grandmaster Darwin Laylo beat International Master Ricardo de Guzman and came in third with 6.5 points.
De Guzman and Young finished fourth and fifth, respectively, with 3.5 points each while Frayna landed at sixth place with 2.5 points.
Bersamina for his feat, pocketed the top purse worth P10,000 in this event, supported by Dr. Jose "Joe" Carreon Balinas, Engr. Antonio "Tony" Carreon Balinas and the late Grandmaster and Attorney Rosendo Carreon Balinas Jr. Family.
Antonio received P5,000 while Laylo, De Guzman, Young and Frayna got P3,000 each.
No less than Asia's First Grandmaster Eugene Torre, National Chess Federation of the Philippines Vice President for Visayas Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares, International Arbiter Reden Cruz and Woman Fide Master Michelle Yaon led the closing rites.
During the closing rites, GM Torre recalled the late Grandmaster and Attorney Rosendo Balinas Jr. who drew with World Champion Robert James "Bobby" Fischer. He also acknowledged the contribution of GM Balinas in the Philippines. GM Balinas achieved his greatest victory at the 1976 Odessa (Ukraine) International Tournament, winning with a 10–4 score.
He was also grateful to the Balinas family for supporting chess tournaments thru Bayanihan Chess Club especially in this time of pandemic.
Rep. Colmenares, on the other hand, recalled the popularity of GM Balinas back then. He also cite playing with GM Balinas in a rare simultaneous chess exhibition. Interestingly, GM Torre, GM Balinas and Rep. Colmenares came from Iloilo/Negros provinces.-Marlon Bernardino-
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