Manila bids for World 'Olympic' Memory Championships
By Marlon Bernardino
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 03 Feb 2012
THE Philippines might be the site of the prestigious World 'Olympic' Memory Championships in the near future as the country opens its bid to host the tournaments featuring the best and the brightest mental athletes in the world.
The world's most comprehensive test of memory, founded by Tony Buzan and Chess Grandmaster Raymond Keene OBE and run by the World Memory Sports Council, the said event was inaugurated in 1991 in London, host of the first 11 stagings of the yearly organized competition of mental sports where participants memorize as much information within a given period of time.
Kuala Lumpur hosted in 2003, Bahrain in 2007 and 2008 and Guangzhou the last two years. England hosted the competition all other years in London, Manchester and Oxford.
Philippine Memory team manager Aurelio "Reli" de Leon broke the news of Binay?s offer after he brought the squad to the Vice President in a courtesy call at the Coconut Palace last month. ?The Vice President was impressed by the performance of our team which got the silver medal in Guangzhou last December,? said De Leon. ?He gave us instructions to do what we can in hosting the event here in 2013 and we?ll do our best to get the job done.?
The Philippine team was composed of Johann Randall Abrina, Roberto Racasa, Christopher Carandang, Mark Anthony Castaneda, Axelyancy Cowan Tabernilla, Edwin Balinas and Mark Anthony Adarlo with De Leon as team manager and assisted by head coach Almario Marlon Bernardino, Jr.
China won the gold medal in the event that brought in 121 competitors from 18 countries, including the US, England, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, South Africa, India and Canada.
Aside from the silver medal in the team category, the Philippines claimed a bronze from Abrina in the Historical/Future Dates class. Abrina, 29, is a UP sports psychology graduate from Wack-Wack, Mandaluyong.
In the World Olympic Memory Championships, there are 10 classes of competition ? One-Hour Numbers, 5-Minute Numbers, Spoken Numbers, 30-Minute Binary Digits, One-Hour Playing Cards, Random List of Words, Names and Faces (world record: 195 names), 5-Minute Historical/Future Dates, Abstract Images and Speed Cards (world record: 21.9 seconds memorizing the order of a shuffled deck of 52 playing cards).
Bernardino, a Philippine and US chess master, said the silver medal in the team event and the bronze medal in the Historical/Future Dates class prove that the Filipino is at par with the world?s best memory athletes. ?With ample training and preparation, we can even become world champions,? he added. ?We believe that memory games is what the Filipino needs to have a better quality of education. We are very optimistic that memory games will bring honor to our country in future international competitions.?
A team member Castaneda, 23, became the first Filipino grandmaster of memory. The Rizal Technological University graduate student memorized a 1,140 digit number in an hour enroute to his grandmaster norm. He memorized a deck of cards in a minute and 10 seconds for his second grandmaster norm. Castaneda memorized 13 decks of cards, equivalent to 676 cards, in an hour for his third grandmaster norm.
Another member Balinas, 23, took two grandmaster norms. The Polytechnic University of the Philippines graduate student memorized a 1,380 digit number in an hour for his first norm then a deck of cards in a minute and 10 seconds for his second.
De Leon said the participation of the team in Guangzhou wouldn?t have been possible without the support of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office chairman Margie Juico and general manager Atty. Joy Rojas, Mandaluyong City Mayor Benhur Abalos, Mandaluyong City Rep. Boyet Gonzales, Bagong Henerasyon Party List Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy, sportsman Hermie Esguerra, St. Francis Square?s Luke Roxas, Bicycle Playing Cards, Accel?s Willie Ortiz, Dra. Regina Canlas of the Makati Medical Center, PBA Legend Sen. Robert Jaworski, Terry Capistrano, Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richie Garcia, PSC commissioner Chito Loyzaga, Philippine Olympic Committee president Jose Cojuangco, Jr., POC secretary-general Steve Hontiveros, Human Plus Pro Biotics and Speaker Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Marlon Bernardino.
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