Antonio, Laylo grab share of lead in 'Battle of the Grandmasters'
MANILA, Philippines — Joey Antonio continued to turn back time while fellow Grandmaster Darwin Laylo boosted his bid for another Olympiad stint after they bested their respective foes and seized a share of the lead after three rounds of the Battle of the Grandmasters at the PACE on Thurday.
Antonio, 64, relied on his endgame grit and a dangerous outside pass pawn to turn what looked like a drawn endgame into a marathon 75-move win of a Petroff duel.
The 46-year-old Laylo, for his part, survived youthful International Master Christian Gian Karlo Arca’s furious attack and hacked out a 61-move win of a King’s Indian encounter that kept him at the helm alongside Antonio with 2.5 points each.
It also put both Antonio and Laylo in prime position to snag the three slots to this September’s World Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
“The last time I made the Olympiad team was in 2022 in Chennai, India where we finished 32nd,” Laylo told The STAR. “Although it’s still too early, I’ll do my best to make it back to the Olympiad if given a chance.”
Just half a point behind were IMs Jem Garcia and Pau Bersamina, who downed Phil Martin Casiguran and IM Rolando Nolte, respectively, and WIM Ruelle Canino, who halved the point with IM Ronald Bancod.
In women’s side where the last two of the five Olympiad seats are at stake, Heart Padilla stunned Cherry Ann Mejia to catch up on Allaney Jia Doroy, who drew with Olympiad vet Bernadette Galas, on top with 2.5 points apiece.
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