Torre, So take Chess Olympiad honors

MANILA, Philippines – Grandmaster Eugene Torre, long regarded as the face of Philippine chess, virtually retraced the route of his glory years and found some residue of his old brilliance to take the bronze medal in the 42nd Chess Olympiad in Baku, Azerbaijan Tuesday.

And Wesley So, the once child prodigy now playing for the US, took the gold for a better performance rating on board three.

For two weeks, Torre’s brilliance provided some light to the embattled Filipino chessers in the biennial meet, finishing with a remarkable unbeaten campaign in the 11-round tournament with nine victories against two draws.

But the Filipino ace settled for the bronze with 2836 performance rating, losing to So, the former Phl spearhead who bagged the gold with a 2896 PR. Hungarian GM Zoltan Almasi took the silver with a 2845 PR.

The 64-year-old Torre’s 10-point total was the highest among the elite field that featured the world’s top super-GMs.

The bronze was Torre’s first medal since he won the silver in the 1974 Nice Olympiad where he also became Asia’s first GM.

Ironically, Torre’s best finish in over four decades failed to lift Team Phl, which absorbed a 1.5-2.5 defeat to Australia as the Filipinos wound up with 12 match points and ended up 58th for one of the country’s worst finishes in the event.

GM Julio Catalino Sadorra drew GM David Smerdon on top board but GMs John Paul Gomez and Rogelio Barcenilla Jr. went for the win but lost to GM Zhao Zong Yuan and IM Anton Smirnov, respectively.

Sadorra, who missed two games due to illness, scored five out of eight games, including a sensational draw with reigning world champion GM Magnus Carlsen of Norway in the sixth round.

The women’s squad, meanwhile, lost to No. 12 Lithuania, 1-3, and finished 34th overall with 13 points, surpassing the 64th place effort in the last edition in Tromso, Norway.

Catherine Secopito provided the lone point for Team Phl by shocking WIM Salomeja Zaksaite on board three while Janelle Mae Frayna, Jan Jodilyn Fronda and Shania Mae Mendoza fell to GM Viktorija Cmilyte, IM Deimante Daulyte and WFM Daiva Batyte on boards one, two and four, respectively.

Still, Frayna came through with twin feats, becoming the first Filipina GM and clinching a men’s International Master title after scoring seven points in 11 games.

“We’re excited of the future especially in women’s chess,” said GM Jayson Gonzales, the NCFP executive director and women’s captain.