SNYACC 2009 Grand Finals

Once again, the country's best and brightest kids in chess will see action in the Grand Finals of the 2009 Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship (SNYACC) at SM Megamall this coming Saturday and Sunday (October 10-11).

No doubt, SNYACC has already become an institution when it comes to discovering young chess talents from different parts of the Philippines.

Not only that it has already become an institution, but rather it has stood to be the best chess program in looking for chess jewels hidden and scattered all over the country.

The program started in 1992 - yes, it has been 17 long years - and is becoming better and stronger today. It is indeed heartwarming to note that this year's SNYACC regional legs were overwhelmed by big turnouts of participants.

I am not making any comparison but I think the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) will make the SNYACC a benchmark for holding national age-group competitions.

In the first place, it is the NCFP who should be doing what Shell is doing.

The reality is that the men and women behind SNYACC must be doing something right for them to have pushed SNYACC to where it is today.

I don't think it is an overstatement to say that the NCFP should learn from it.