Newly-installed RP junior champion and an incoming freshman student of Far Eastern University, Paulo Bersamina claimed his third gold medal and emerged as the winningest Filipino player at the close of the 11th ASEAN + age-group chess championships at the Traveller’s Hotel in Subic, Zambales late Saturday.
Bersamina added a gold medal in the boys 12 years old and under blitz competition to complete a rare three-gold medal romp in the prestigious 10-day competition. The 12-year-old whiz kid, under FEU Chess head coach GM Jayson Gonzales also bagged the gold medals in the standard and rapid chess competitions to become the most awarded player in the 153-strong Filipino delegation.
The Pasay City-based chess campaigner actually topped the nine-round elimination with seven points on six wins and two draws.
Richelieu Salcedo of Rizal Technological University provided the only gold medal for the country in the blitz competition after ruling the boys 20 years old and under class. Salcedo finished in a three-way tie for 2nd to 4th places with compatriots Nelson Mariano III and Haridas Pascua in the elimination phase with 6.5 points
Aside from the two gold medals by Bersamina and Salcedo , the Filipinos also won three silver and six bronze medals in the blitz competitions. Overall, Vietnam once again bagged the overall championship in the blitz competitions by winning eight golds, seven silvers and three bronzes. The Philippines finished second with a 2-3-6 slate, followed by Indonesia with a 1-0-1 card and Singapore with a 0-1-1 slate.
Paulo Bersamina is a huge boost to the FEU Chess Team, as the Tamaraw wood pushers are set to defend their UAAP Chess Championship both in men’s and women’s division in the upcoming 73rd Season.
