Pinays Group B champs in Chess Olympiad

BUDAPEST – At 49th place and grasping at straws with two rounds to go, the Philippines prayed for the stars to align. They did.

Willing their way out of oblivion, the Filipinas bravely took out their last two foes including the Brazilians in a 4-0 victory in the 11th and final round Sunday, and with everything falling into place, achieved so many milestones in the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad that concluded at the BOK Sports Hall here.

Shania Mendoza, Janelle Mae Frayna, Jodilyn Fronda and Ruelle Canino prevailed across all four boards as the Filipnas gained a share of 22nd with 14 others with 14 match points apiece and eventually 24th overall after the tiebreaks.

It proved enough for the team, seeded 47th entering the 11-round tournament, to snare the gold medal in Group B – among the 35th to the 70th ranked countries based on rating in this 181-nation field – ahead of Montenegro and Latvia.

The gold was a first for the Philippines, which also had Bernadette Galas at last board, since the team of Sheerie Joy Lomibao, Catherine Pereña, Sherily Cua and Beverly Mendoza took the gold in Group C in the 2006 Turin edition.

It was also the best finish since the brave troika of Girme Fontanilla, Mila Emperado and Ma. Cristina Santos Fidaer performed magnificently at 22nd place in 1988 in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Interestingly, all five members earned rating points with Canino, the 16-year-old pint-sized spectacle from Cagayan de Oro and FEU, gaining the most with 102 whopping points after scoring six out of eight points right on her debut. She will rise from 2004 to 2260.

“It will be a legacy in Philippine chess that will be remembered for a long time,” said national women’s team coach Grandmaster Jayson Gonzales, who thanked the Philippine Sports Commission, NCFP chief Butch Pichay, delegation head Atty. Ruel Canobas, women’s manager Atty. Nikki de Vega and Far Eastern U chair Aurelio Montinola III for their support.

The jubilation somehow drowned the sorrows of the country’s stinging 59th-place ending in the men’s open section where it scored 12 points.

The men’s team, out to replicate, if not eclipse the country’s record seventh-place effort in 1988, stumbled after jumping to a share of 15th place with two rounds remaining.

They lost their last two assignments including a painful 3-1 defeat to host Hungary B in the last round.

India harvested the open and women’s gold medals as well as the Gaprindashvili Cup, awarded to the country with the highest total score for the men’s and women’s teams combined.