Filipino youngsters won 7 golds in ASEAN Age Group Championships

Filipino youngsters won 7 golds in ASEAN Age Group Championships
(philstar.com) | Updated June 14, 2015 – 5:00pm

SINGAPORE –  The Philippine chess team won seven gold medals at the close of the standard event Sunday, and expects to win more in the rapid and blitz events starting today in the 16th ASEAN+ Age Group Chess Championships at the Nanyang Technological University campus here.

Woman International Master Bernadette Galas, Woman Fide Master Shania Mae Mendoza, WFM Alaney Jia Doroy, Mhage Sebastian, Stephen Rome Pangilinan and NM Alex Milagrosa won individual gold medals even as Team Philippines also added 13 silvers and 15 bronze medals.

Galas, a student of De La Salle University, engaged Tran Le Dan Thuy, could not get untracked in a tense rook-pawn endgame and settled for a draw to finish with an unbeaten record of 7.5 points, half a point ahead of Sagar Tejaswini of India, who beat WFM Nguyen Thi Thuy Trien of Vietnam.

WIM Janelle Mae Frayna and WFM Antoinette San Diego finished behind Tejaswini with six points each, but because the Indian’s score will not count since participants from outside the ASEAN countries were considered as guest entries, Frayna  and San Diego officially ended up tied for 2nd and 3rdplaces.

Galas, Frayna and San Diego’s combined scores of 19.5 also gave them the team gold.

Mendoza also ended up second in the girls’ Under 18 with six points after drawing her match, but was declared the gold winner, because the leading Shakshi Chitlange, is from India.

Full article here.