INQUIRER Sports

FILIPINO PLAYERS AIM FOR better finishes when the fifth Prospero Pichay Cup international chess championship begins today at the LWUA Bldg. along Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City.

Minus teen sensation Grandmaster Wesley So, the Philippine contingent sputtered in the just concluded PGMA Cup, with GM Rogelio ?Joey? Antonio and International Master Oliver Dimakiling emerging the best placers at joint sixth.

The locals, however, will again have to contend with the strong foreign delegation led by newly crowned PGMA Cup champion GM Anton Filippov of Uzbekistan, who wrested the title by tiebreak over four other visitors.

The World Chess Cup-bound Filippov, who totes an Elo of 2595, is bidding to become the first player to sweep the twin tournaments held in honor of President Macapagal-Arroyo and Prospero ?Butch? Pichay, president of the organizing National Chess Federation of the Philippines.

Other notable foreign bets are top-seeded Georgian GM Michail Mchedlishvili and fellow GMs Merab Gagunashvili of Georgia, Ehsan Ghaemmaghami of Iran, Tigran Kotanjian of Armenia, Anuar Ismagambetov and Pyotr Kostenko of Kazakhstan, Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son and Dao Thien Hai of Vietnam and Li Shilong of China.

Nguyen, Ghaemmaghami, Gahushnavili actually wound up tied for first with Filippov in the PGMA Cup.

GM Zhang Zhong of Singapore and GM Abhijit Kunte of India are also joining the nine-round tournament which offers a total prize of $30,000.

Also expected to carry the fight for the Philippines are GMs Eugene Torre, John Paul Gomez, Darwin Laylo, Mark Paragua, Jayson Gonzales and Buenaventura ?Bong? Villamayor, GM-elect Ronald Dableo and IMs Richard Bitoon and Rolando Nolte.

Pichay, also the chair of the sponsoring Local Water Utilities Administration, and Mchedlishvili will make the ceremonial moves during the brief opening rites at 1 p.m. today.