Barbosa draws with S'porean GM

SINGAPORE – Former national junior champion IM Oliver Barbosa drew with top seed GM Zurab Azmaiparashvili of Singapore Wednesday and stayed among the frontrunners after the seventh round of the 2010 ASEAN Open chess championships at the Stanfield Residences here.

Barbosa, who rose to prominence in winning both the national junior championship and national under-18 crown in 2004, also drew with IM Nguyen Van Huy of Vietnam in the fifth round and won over compatriot Reggie Olay in the sixth round.

After seven rounds, Barbosa had five points on three wins and four draws, only half point behind Azmaiparashvili in this 32-player tournament held as part of the annual Singapore International Chess Festival.

Azmaiparashvili, a highly rated Georgian native who now plays for Singapore, halved the point with GM Susanto Megaranto of Indonesia in the fifth round before beating erstwhile Filipino frontrunner IM Richard Bitoon the following round.

Six players, led by GM John Paul Gomez and Cebu sensation IM Kim Steven Yap, also stayed in contention with 4.5 points out of a possible seven.

Gomez, seeded fourth with an Elo rating of 2522, followed up back-to-back draws with compatriot Nelson Mariano III and IM Nguyen Van Huy with a victory over FM Nguyen Duc Hoa of Vietnam.