IM Barbosa nears GM norm

BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

FILIPINO International Master (IM) Oliver Barbosa defeated Iranian IM Alavi Sayed Javad in the sixth round to boost his chance to a first Grandmaster (GM) norm in the on-going 10th Asian Continental Individual chess championships at the Hotel Pardisan in Mashhad, Iran on Saturday.

The Taytay, Rizal ace Barbosa, thus, maintained himself in the joint 13th with 3.5 points along with compatriots GM Wesley So, GM Mark Paragua and GM John Paul Gomez, GM Anuar Ismagambetov of Kazakhstan, GM Zhou Weiqi, IM Yang Kaiqi and Lu Shanglei of China and former world champion GM Rustam Kasimdhanov (2685) of Uzbekistan, his seventh round opponent.

So split the points with IM Shyam Sundar M of India, Paragua halved the points with IM Vidit Santosh Gujrathi of India and Gomez toppled FM Pourramezanali Amirreza of Iran.

Kasimdhanov, who captured the World Chess Crown by beating Briton GM Michael Adams during their title match in 2004 World Championships in Tripoli, Libya, settled a truce with Indian GM Parimarjan Negi.

With the norm in sight, Barbosa needed to score at least 5.5 points in nine outings enroute to his first GM Norm according to National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) chairman/ president Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr.

"Nakumpleto na ni (Oliver) Barbosa ang requirments na may nakalaban na tatlong grandmaster sa iba't-ibang federation. Kailangan niya lamang maka iskor at least 5.5 points para sa 1st GM norm. As of round 6, mataas din ang total performance rating (TPR) 2623 ni Barbosa," said Pichay yesterday.

The No. 27 Barbosa who hold an Elo rating of 2506, drew his first three games against higher rated opponents in the likes of No.2 GM Krishnan Sasikiran (2676) of India, No.8 GM Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (2635) of Vietnam and No.12 GM Ehsan Ghaem Maghami (2606) of Iran, respectively.

He beat No.42 FM Al-Ali Hussein Ali Hussein (2394) of Iran in the fourth, bowed to No.14 GM Zhao Jun (2574) of China in the fifth before beating No.38 IM Alavi (2428).
" Sana makuha ko na ang GM norm dito sa Iran. Lagi kasi ako kinakapos eh. Malaki chance dito kasi Asian Continental Championships ito," said Barbosa.

GM Darwin Laylo, meantime succumbed to Indian GM Adhiban B. The San Roque, Marikina City bet Laylo remains at 3 points and was dropped into a tie for 22nd to 31st place.
Meanwhile, GM Yu Yangyi of China settled a draw with GM Pentala Harikrishna of India to still on top of the leadership board with 5 points.

Sasikiran outclassed GM Zhou Weiqi of China to share Harikrishna for 2nd to 3rd place with 4.5 points apiece.

The top four finishers in the annual tournament will earn the right to represent the region in the 2011 World Cup scheduled in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia later this year.
China and India have the most number of entries with 12 players each, while host Iran has 10. The Philippines has five players, followed by Vietnam with three, Kazakhstan with two and Chinese-Taipei, Indonesia, Iraq, Syria, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan with one each.

Of the 50 participants, 28 are GMs and 10 IMs.

The National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP), headed by chairman/ president Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr, and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), thru Chairman Richie Garcia, are supporting the Filipinos’ campaign.