Final qualifying leg of Chess Infinitum Battlegrounds set for Sunday

Woodpushers compete in the Cebu Chess Infinitum Tournament 2022 at the Ayala Center Cebu on July 16, 2022. | Contributed Photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A mix of rising stars and seasoned veterans will square off on the chessboards in the sixth edition of the Chess Infinitum Battlegrounds, set to unfold on Sunday, January 12, at Robinsons Galleria Cebu.

Tournament organizer and arbiter Kevin Yap has revealed a competitive field for Sunday’s event, which is expected to attract over a hundred woodpushers.

Among the list of contenders are previous champions and promising players, including varsity woodpushers Edelyn Vosotros, Maria Kristine Lavandero, and John Dave Lavandero, as well as seasoned players such as Michael Joseph Pagaran, Dennis Navales, Joel Pacuribot, Angelo Tan, Jupiter Sevillano, Michael Piar, and Venancio Loyola Jr.

The tournament will also feature National Master (NM) Rommel Ganzon, widely regarded as one of the top contenders for the title.

The Chess Infinitum Battlegrounds is rooted in a unique chess variant first introduced by Cebuano chess patron Boojie Lim in the early 2000s.

The variant, known as Infinitum Chess, is played on a semi-10×10 board with standard chess pieces but has a key difference: each player has only six pawns and an additional special piece called the wizard.

The game’s complexity and challenging nature have made it increasingly popular within the mainstream chess community, offering players a fresh and elevated level of competition.

The top two finishers from Sunday’s tournament will advance to the grand finals, which will take place on January 26. The champion will walk away with a P10,000 prize, a trophy, and a certificate. The second to twelfth placers will also receive corresponding cash prizes from the organizers.

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