INTERNATIONAL Master Oliver Dimakiling cruised to his sixth straight win and earned his second Grandmaster result in the fifth Battle of Grandmasters yesterday in Kalibo, Aklan.
The 31-year-old Dimakiling stunned top seed Oliver Barbosa in the ninth round to boost his total to 14 points, good for the solo lead and a GM result by virtue of the 6.5 points out of 9.0 points (13.0 out of 18) rule of the Fide (World Chess Federation).
Dimakiling, the pride of Davao who first secured a GM result in the 3rd Dato Arthur tan Malaysia Open Chess Championship in 2006, led resurgent GM Mark Paragua (13.0 points), GM Darwin Laylo (12.0) and United States-based GM Julio Catalino Sadorra (11.5) in the race for three slots to the Philippine men’s team to the Istanbul Chess Olympiad set to start late next month.
A member of the national team to the 2008 Turin Olympiad, Dimakiling only needs one more GM norm to become a full-fledged GM.
Paragua, bested Asia’s first GM Eugene Torre en route to his third straight win while Laylo and Sadorra kept abreast with victories over Fide Masters Randy Segarra and Roderick Nava, respectively.
Former solo-leader GM Rogelio “Joey” Antonio was held to a draw by GM Richard Bitoon and landed at 11.0 points, towing Torre, Barbosa, Bitoon and GM John Paul Gomez, who resuscitated his bid by trouncing IM Emmanuel Senador. Roy Luarca