GRANDMASTER (GM) Julio Catalino Sadorra reinforced his position as one of the Philippines’ top chessers after he successfully defended his title in the 10th Annual Chesapeake Open Chess Championships on Tuesday at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Rockville, Maryland.
Sadorra defeated Indian Jeevan Karamsetty in the final round to finish undefeated with 6.5 points in the seven round tournament. He pocketed $2,000.
GM Alexander Fishbein of the United States and IM Praveen Balakrishnan of India, both tallied 5.5 points to share 2nd to 3rd places.
Last year, Sadorra and compatriot GM entry Mark Paragua tied for first with 6.0 points but the latter settled for second overall with an inferior tiebreak points.
In the Under 2,000 section, Filipino Jelvis Arandela Calvelo finished second overall with 5.5 points on five wins, a draw and a loss.
The 38 year-old Toronto, Canada based Calvelo works as an aircraft winder and technician at the Canada International Aviation Inc.
Xianglong Chen of China won the Under 2,000 section with a perfect 7.0 points.
Calvelo, a former chess coach at the DLSU, PCU and Emilio Aguinaldo College, will also compete in the 2018 Cleveland, Ohio Open Chess Championships on January 26-27.