Wesley So draws with Chinese; retains share of the lead going into the last two rounds
By Marlon Bernardino
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 26 Feb 2013
Individual standings after Round 8:
6.5 points -- GM Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine), GM Wesley Barbasa So (Philippines), GM Marcin Dziuba (Poland), GM Grzegorz Gajewski (Poland), IM Wei Yi (China), GM Ding Liren (China)
6.0 points -- GM Yu Yangyi (China), GM Anish Giri (The Netherlands), GM Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria), GM Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria), GM Mustafa Yilmaz (Turkey), GM Nils Grandelius (Sweden), GM Erwin L'ami (The Netherlands), GM David Navara (Czech Republic), GM Hannes Stefansson (Iceland), GM Bassem Amin (Egypt), IM Sopiko Guramishvili (Georgia)
Round 9 top board pairings:
Board 1: GM Ding Liren (China) vs GM Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine)
Board 2: GM Wesley Barbasa So (Philippines) vs GM Marcin Dziuba (Poland)
Board 3: GM Grzegorz Gajewski (Poland) vs IM Wei Yi (China)
FILIPINO Grandmaster Wesley Barbasa So (ELO 2684) was held to a draw this time by GM Yu Yangyi (ELO 2688) of China but retained a share of the lead in the 8th round of the 28th Reykjavik Open chess championships at Harpa, the 28.000 sqm. concert hall in Reykjavik, Iceland on Tuesday.
So, 19, and Yu agreed to halve to the point after 22 moves of Ruy Lopez Opening to raise his total 6.5 points and create a six-way tie for first.
Bunched at 6.5 points are GM Pavel Eljanov of Ukraine, GM Marcin Dziuba and GM Grzegorz Gajewski of Poland, GM Ding Liren and IM Wei Yi of China.
Eljanov split the point with Gajewski after 35 moves of English Opening, Dziuba toppled GM Ivan Sokolov of the Netherlands after 68 moves of Queens Gambit Accepted, Ding routed GM Alexander Ipatov of Turkey after 31 moves of King's Indian defense and Wei upset GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France after 33 moves of Sicilian defense, Rossolimo variation.
The Filipino champion will be facing Dziuba in the crucial ninth round of the tournament, Ding will meet Eljanov while Gajewski opposite Wei in the event which offers a prize fund of 15,000 euro with the winner taking 5,000 euro and the runner-up getting 2,000 euro.
So?s campaign is backed up by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) headed by it's Chairman/President Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr., Secretary-General Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham "Bambol" Tolentino Jr. and Executive Director GM Jayson Gonzales.
The tournament serves as So?s build up for the 2013 World Chess Cup scheduled on August 10 to September 5 in Tromso, Norway. Joining So in the World Chess Cup is fellow GM Oliver Barbosa. -Marlon Bernardino-
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Marlon Bernardino.
Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:
A Masterpiece of Boxing: Terence Crawford Dethrones Canelo Alvarez in Historic Showdown
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025LEWIS CROCKER IS CROWNED THE NEW IBF WORLD WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION
Sun, 14 Sep 2025Battle of Undefeated: Callum Walsh Vanquishes Fernando Vargas Jr.
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025Undercard Inferno: Mbilli and Martinez Deliver a Super Middleweight War Ending in a Thrilling Draw
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025Crawford to defy odds?
By Joaquin Henson, Sun, 14 Sep 2025Clash of Titans: The Final Predictions for Canelo Álvarez vs. Terence Crawford
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025Weigh-In Results: Naoya Inoue vs. Murodjon Akhmadaliev
Sun, 14 Sep 2025Inoue and Akhmadaliev Make Weight for Sunday's Battle, Watch it LIVE on Facebook!
By Carlos Costa, Sun, 14 Sep 2025IIEE North Cotabato and Metro Central are the Golden Champion on 3x3 Basketball and 3x3 Chess
By Marlon Bernardino, Sun, 14 Sep 2025Sydney Sy Tancontian is Female Awardee of Sports Hero of the Year
By Lito delos Reyes, Sat, 13 Sep 2025Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford: Size Matters
By Chris Carlson, Sat, 13 Sep 2025BOOTS TALKS SPARRING WITH CANELO IN ‘DAY IN THE LIFE’
Sat, 13 Sep 2025WEIGHTS FROM LAS VEGAS: CANELO - 167.5 LBS., CRAWFORD - 167.5 LBS.
By Dong Secuya, Sat, 13 Sep 2025BELFAST: WEIGH-IN RESULTS AND FIGHT NIGHT RUNNING ORDER
Sat, 13 Sep 2025Canoy cancels title fight due to child’s death
By Lito delos Reyes, Sat, 13 Sep 2025