BUDAPEST, Hungary — The Philippines saw its hope for a best finish nipped in the bud after falling to Georgia, 2.5-1.5, in the 10th and penultimate round of the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad at the BOK Sports Hall here Saturday.
The Filipinos had all the chances to either pull off a match win or a match draw with Grandmaster Julio Catalino Sadorra and International Master Jan Emmanuel Garcia appearing to have gained the superior positions.
In the end, Mr. Sadorra settled for a 22-move draw with GM Mikheil Mchedlishvili of a Center Counter duel via repetition at board one as well as Mr. Garcia, who halved with the point in 39 moves with GM Levan Pantsulaia of an English encounter at board four.
GM-elect Daniel Quizon also drew his game with Nikolozi Kacharava in 35 moves of a Ruy Lopez that sent it in a 1.5-1.5 tie before IM Pau Bersamina missed out on his drawing chances and succumbed to GM Luka Paichadze in 43 moves of a Sicilian scrimmage at board three.
That sent the Filipinos, whose trip is bankrolled by the Philippine Sports Commission and backed by NCFP chief Butch Pichay, freefalling from a share of No. 15 to a group at No. 36 with 12 match points.
It also dealt a big blow to Mr. Sadorra’s chances of snaring an individual medal at board one as he sank from third to fourth, behind Indian Dommaraju Gukjesh, Uzbek Nodirbek Abdusattorov and former world champion and current No. 1 Magnus Carlsen of Norway.
The University of Texas in Dallas coach though could still gatecrash into the top three assuming he wins his final round duel with super GM Adam Kozak of Hungary B and something catastrophic happens with players ahead of him.
WOMEN’S SECTION
In the women’s section, WGM Janelle Mae Frayna and wonder girl Ruelle Canino pulled off wins to lift the country to a 2.5-1.5 squeaker over Iceland and into a share of 36th spot with 12 points.
Ms. Frayna survived Woman FIDE Master Hallgerdur Thorsteindottir in 56 moves of an Alekhine Defense at board two while Ms. Canino flattened Gudrun Fanney Briem’s King’s Indian in 31 moves at board four.
Woman International Master Jan Jodilyn Fronda came back from the dead and drew with Idunn Helgadottir in 71 moves of a Sicilian at board three to help the Filipinas escape with the win.
The lone casualty for the Filipinas was WFM Shania Mae Mendoza, who lost to WGM Lenka Ptacnikova in 66 moves of a Four Knights Game at board one.
They will clash with Brazil in the final round with hopes of surpassing its 39th-place finish in Chennai, India two years back. — Joey Villar