1000GM Chess Academy Launched, 110 Kids Respond
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 20 Feb 2024
The search for the next Philippine grandmaster went off to a blazing start with 110 kids responding to the 1000GM (grandmaster) Chess Academy inaugural tournament recently at the Robinson’s Galleria Mall in Ortigas.
The ambitious project, bankrolled by the 1000GM organization based in the USA, https://academy.1000gm.net, saw an immense talent pool compete for a slot in the national finals set next year. Danry Seth Romualdez scored a perfect seven wins to take the Under-11 years old category.
The eight-year-old Romualdez bested a girl campaigner, Amber Mariana Maravilla, 10, in the last round in a sharp Accelerated Sicilian Dragon game that saw advantages shift to both sides. Maravilla failed to nurse an extra pawn advantage and blundered last giving up the exchange.
Six-year-old Tori Ansel Mariano scored three wins and was among 55 kids who competed. Caleb Loukas Picache-David and Caleb Royce Garcia made it a 1-2-3 finish for Pasig chessers, scoring six points, apiece.
In the 14-Under category, third seed Summer Justine Oncita won with black in the seventh round, beat Almwayne Magpusao, and took the champion’s title with 6.5 points. Fourth seed Cyrus Luis Mahawan took solo second with six points among 45 age group campaigners.
Parents, some of whom traveled from faraway Infanta, Quezon (125 kilometers), supported their son’s passion and signified their intention to compete in the next leg on March 17, also at the Robinsons Galleria.
The 1000GM project aims to guide both parents and kids to achieve full potential into becoming world beaters. The website, https://academy.1000gm.net, can be accessed for a minimal fee and will lay out the groundwork for guidance.
Srikanth Bangalore of the US, disclosed that simultaneous kiddies tournaments will be held in the US, Mexico, India and Ecuador, among others. The Philippine side will also conduct tournaments and talent search in Visayas and Mindanao.
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