ASEAN championships ready to roll
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sports | Thu, December 17 2015, 8:34 AM
Participants from Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines and host Indonesia are set to compete in the JAPFA 3rd ASEAN Championships 2015, which will be held from Dec. 22 to 30 in Jakarta.
Organizer Kristianus Liem said that the remaining Southeast Asian countries — Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore and Thailand — had not yet confirmed their attendance in the contest.
The competition, which is listed in the calendar of World Chess Federation (FIDE), will have Grandmaster and Woman Grandmaster titles up for grab.
“We’re choosing [to host the competition] because it gives chances to participants to grab Grandmaster and Woman Grandmaster titles regardless of their current form,” said Indonesian Chess Association (Percasi) deputy chief Grandmaster Utut Adianto.
The tournament features three categories: ASEAN Open (FIDE rating above 2300), ASEAN Women (FIDE rating 2100 and above) and Challengers. Each country may nominate one player with a FIDE rating below 2001 for the Women’s Championship.
In ASEAN Master and ASEAN Women, each participating country, except for the host, may send a maximum of two athletes.
Indonesia, which is to deploy young guns, is looking to add to its tally of Grandmasters and Woman Grandmasters.
International Master Sean Winshand Cuhendi, Woman International Master Chelsie Monica Sihite and Woman FIDE Master Shanti Nur Abidah are among the host’s hopefuls.
Seventeen-year-old Sean won the 2015 National Championships, and also came out victorious at the JAPFA GM Chess Championship in April.
Another 2015 national champion, Chelsie, 20, nailed her Woman Grandmaster title at the Chess Olympics in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2012.
Meanwhile, 2015 National Championship runner-up Shanti, 15, is an aspiring athlete. One of her achievements was grabbing a bronze medal at the World School Chess Championship in Thailand in May.
Utut said that he was greatly looking forward to seeing new Indonesian Grandmasters and Woman Grandmasters from the event.
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