INQUIRER Sports

EXPECT another stellar field of young chess players when the 2009 Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship winds up its seven-leg nationwide eliminations in Davao City on Sept. 19-20 at the SM City Davao Event Center.

The past years have seen over 500 players in the Davao leg clashing for top honors and berths in the national finals for both the Kiddies and Juniors divisions. Because of the expected big number of participants in the Davao leg, there will be four top spots up for grabs instead of the usual three, in each division.

The top four players in both the 20-and-Under and 14-and-Under categories will join the other top finishers in the other legs to the national finals slated on October 10-11 at the SM Megamall, where the the Junior champion will be taking home P30,000 and the Kiddies winner receiving P20,000.

The Shell Active Chess is the nation's longest running, grassroots-based chess tournament, which supports the empowerment of the youth as part of Shell?s commitment to sustainable development.

The event is sanctioned by the National Chess Federation of the Phils. and backed by Shell Fuels, Shellane, Shell Helix and McDonald's, in partnership with SM Supermalls.