Philippine chess team off to a good start in 44th Chennai, India Chess Olympiad
By Marlon Bernardino
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 30 Jul 2022
MANILA---THE Philippine men's and women's chess teams scored similar victories at the start of 44th World Chess Olympiad Friday at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai, India.
The men’s team easily posted a shutout victory over their Oman counterparts while the women's team blasted Guam.
Grandmasters Mark Paragua, John Paul Gomez and Darwin Laylo and International Master Paulo Bersamina delivered the wins in the men’s side while WIM Jan Jodilyn Fronda, Woman FIDE Master Shania Mendoza, WIM Marie Antoinette San Diego and WIM Kylen Joy Mordido provided the triumphs in the women’s.
The pair of impressive wins launched the country’s bid to improve on its finish of 37th place in the men’s and 67th in the women’s in the last over-the-board edition of the biennial event in Batumi, Georgia four years ago.
While the GM Jayson Gonzales-mentored women’s squad had it easy, there were some anxious moments in the GM Eugene Torre-coached men’s side particularly in the game of Paragua, who fought his way back from an inferior position in outlasting an upset-conscious FM Amer Al Maashani.
Paragua’s escape sealed the 52nd-seeded Filipinos’ place in the 92-country logjam at first that included 76 that posted 4-0 shutout wins.
They play sixth pick Azerbiajan, an all-GM team who brought down Algeria, 4-0.
GM Banjo Barcenilla will suit up on this one after an opening day breather in place of Laylo.
The Filipinas, ranked 39th, for their part, shared the lead with 78 others including 69 other nations who had the same score as them.
They battle No. 78 Nicaragua, which smashed Somalia, 4-0.-Marlon Bernardino-
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