Colaste goes for triple gold; Iloilo tops event

Kimberly Colaste of Iloilo City downed Maria Kristine Lavandero of Cebu City in the final round to top the girls’ 12-under standard division and emerge the first double-gold medal winner in chess in the Visayas leg of the 2019 Philippine National Youth Games-Batang Pinoy at Iloilo Sports Complex Covered Gym on Friday.

Colaste, 11, finished with a total of six points, half a point ahead of eventual silver medalist Ysabelle Noriel Nabor of La Carlota City (5.5 points).

It was the second gold for the Asean Youth campaigner after she also topped the rapid event last Monday.

Colaste is expected to go for a chess triple crown as she shoots for the blitz gold starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

Anton Benedict Bebit gave Iloilo its fourth gold in chess after he topped the 12-under standard event by drawing with Mark Alfonso Azaola of Capiz in the final round ahead of Tagbilaran’s Kyle Christian Sumingat.

Their efforts virtually gave Iloilo City its very first overall title in Batang Pinoy as it has raked in a 46-38-35 (gold-silver-bronze) haul ahead of last year’s champion Cebu City (32-42-44) and Cebu Province (32-20-33) with one more day of competitions to go.

Bacolod City’s Tyrone Dale Yao denied Asean Youth gold medal winner Jave Mareck Peteros of Cebu City a second gold by snatching the boys’ under-15 standard mint.

Yao, who split the point with Jerish John Velarde of Lapu Lapu, and Peteros, who smashed John Lester Belano of Cebu Province, actually finished tied for first with 5.5 points apiece but the former took the gold by virtue of his shock fourth-round upset of the latter.