Whiz kid now an IM

Mark Paragua became the country's youngest International Master at 16 when he clinched the third and final IM result behind a strong finish in the tough Anibal Open chess tournament in Linares, Spain over the weekend.

Paragua defeated Spaniard Jesus Baron Rodriguez in a tightly-fought last round duel of a Center Game to notch his 6.5 points out of the possible 10 and become a full-fledged IM, according to his mother Flor.

The chess prodigy obtained the first two IM results last year at the Mechanics Institute tournament in San Francisco, California in June and the North Bay Open in Canada in August. Paragua, supported by Ricky Santos of PBA commissioner Jun Bernardino's office, Active Chess Center of Asia (ACCA), PTA general manager Lito Banayo, Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Chess Federation, has been campaigning in Europe since October, 1999.

He is currently taking part in the Ubeda Open tournament in Spain. The Anibal Open is Paragua's toughest tournament to date, where he matched skills and talent with veteran Russian grandmasters.

Sergei Dolmatov, a former Candidate for the world championship, topped the Anibal Open with eight points, nipping fellow GM Lajos Portisch, another former world title contender.