Pichay named FIDE adviser; Tolentino heads Asian zone

HANTY-Mansiysk, Russia – National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) president-chairman Prospero Pichay Jr. was named by FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov to the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Panel of Advisers while NCFP secretary-general Abraham Tolentino was elected zone president at the FIDE Congress which ended Sunday in this Siberian city.

Pichay was instrumental in the re-election of the FIDE president for another four -year term after Pichay lectured former world champion Gary Kasparov on parliamentary procedures.

Mayor Tolentino of Tagaytay was elected zone president of the Southeast Asian Zone of FIDE.

Brunei, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are the 15 member countries of the Southeast Asian zone.

Chess is part of the Southeast Asian Games and the zone holds an annual championship as part of the world championship cycle.

Also re-elected was Asian Chess Federation president Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifah Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates together with deputy president Casto Abundo of the Philippines.

Tolentino succeeds Dang Tat Thang of Vietnam who was zone president for two terms.

Ilyumzhinov was re-elected in a hotly-contested election against former world champion Anatoly Karpov who was backed by Kasparov.

FIDE is composed of 170 national chess federations around the world. It is divided into four continents – Europe, Americas, Asia and Africa.

The continents are further divided into zones grouped together in accordance with regional points of view. Asia has seven zones – West Asia, Central Asia, India, Indian sub-continent, China, Southeast Asia and Oceania. Asia has 47 member nations and the Southeast Asian zone has the largest number of member countries.