RP chessers upbeat on Olympic stint

The Philippine team leaves for Germany next week, ready and confident of its chances in the 38th World Chess Olympiad slated Nov. 11-27 in Dresden.

Bannered by GM Wesley So and veteran campaigner GM Buenaventura  “Bong” Villamayor, the Filipinos are hoping to improve the country’s 44th-place finish in the men’s division during the 2006 Olympiad held in Turin, Italy.

The team, composed of GMs Mark Paragua, Eugene Torre, Rogelio Antonio Jr., Darwin Laylo, Oliver Dimakiling and So, finished with a 13-round total of 28.5 points.

Only So and Laylo are returning to competition this year.

“I think we have better chances with our teams this year compared to the ones we had in the Turin Olympiad two years ago,” said National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) president Prospero “Butch” Pichay.

“Eugene (Torre) and Joey (Antonio) may no longer be with the team, but Wesley and the rest of the Filipino campaigners are equally capable of holding their own against the world’s best,” said Pichay.

Pichay said Villamayor will man top board with So on No. 2.

Aside from So, Laylo and Villamayor, the other members of the five-man team are GM Jayson Gonzales and IM John Paul Gomez.

The women’s team is composed of Catherine Perena, Shercila Cua, Daisy Rivera, Cheradee Chardine Camacho and Christy Lamiel Bernales.

In Turin, the 60th-seeded Fiipinas finished tied for 23rd to 27th places with 22 points.

The team was composed of Sherrie Joy Lomibao, Sherily Cua and Beverly Mendoza.

Only Perena remained with this year’s team.

Torre and Cesar Caturla will serve as non-playing captains for this year’s men’s and women’s teams, respectively.

The tournament will be held from Nov. 11-27 at the International Congress Center in Dresden, the state capital of Saxony.

So far, the organizing committee in Dresden reported a record number of participants - 148 in the men’s division and 114 in the women’s category.

The record easily surpassed the previous high recorded during the Olympiad in Turin, Italy two years ago. The record was also noted in the women’s division, which was enlarged to include four players per team (from three in the previous Olympiads).

An extravagant opening ceremony was also unveiled by the Saxon Capital Mayor Helma Orosz to be held at the Freiberger Arena in Dresden on Nov. 12.

World-class musician Max Mutzke, songster Zascha Moktan and the stars of the Dresden State Operetta are set to present a spectacular 90-minute show serving as welcome party for the Olympiad participants.

André Meyer, dramatic adviser of the Dresden State Operetta, cultural partner of the Chess Olympiad 2008, announced more exciting shows during the opening ceremony.

These include performances by the speed skaters or the dance show of the “Lunatics” Cheerleader.

Dirk Zöllner will also sing the Olympiad song.

Piano player Wolfgang Scheffler composed the hymn for the Chess Olympiad, which will also be played in the Dresden public busses and trams during the event.         

Armenia, bannered by GMs Levon Aronian and Vladimir Akopian, topped the 37th edition held in Turin, Italy last May 20-June 4, 2006

The Armenians finished with 36 points.

China, led by GMs Bu Xiangzhi and Zhang Pengxiang, and the United States, spearheaded by GMs Gata Kamsky and Alexander Onischuk, finished second and third, respectively.

Israel finished furht, while Hungary wound up fifth overall. Russia, bannered by GMs Vladimir Kramnik and Peter Svidler, finished only sixth with 32 points.

Also in the Top 10 were France, seventh; Ukraine, eighth; Bulgaria, ninth and Spain, 10th.

In the women’s division, Ukraine finished first, followed by Russia, China, United States and Hungary.