Saturday, May 23, 2009

Open Chess Tournament- June Edition

The Open Chess Tournament- June Edition is scheduled on June 6-7, 2009 at the Alex and Al Cafe and Snackhouse. This will be a five round Swiss system event. The tournament is open to all interested. No registration fee is required. Play starts at 9:00 a.m. of June 6, 2009.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Sibalom Chess Association holds youth tournament

The Sibalom Chess Association headed by Mr. Agaton Grasparil will be holding its yearly youth tournament this May. Here is their press release;

SIBALOM CHESS ASSOCIATION
Helping develop and harness the municipality’s intellectual capital
c/o SK Chairperson Benjamen B. Evardone Jr., Cubay Napultan, Sibalom, Antique http://profiles.friendster.com/sichessasso
sibalom_chess_association@yahoo.com 09196922379
May 10, 2009
PRESS RELEASE
13th Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom to be conducted
SIBALOM, Antique – The thirteenth yearly edition of the Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom, a tournament which is open to Sibalomnons who have not yet reached the age of twenty-two years, will be conducted later this month.
The event, named Ilabas 2009 – Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom, will start on May 27, 2009 at the Alex & Al CafĂ© and Snack House in District II, and end on May 28, 2009 at the Ilabas Barangay Hall.
The event is a project of the Sibalom Chess Association which is led by Agaton R. Grasparil III. The event is supported by the following: the Barangay Council of Ilabas which is led by Honorable Gemma Grafane-Tabiling, the Sangguniang Kabataan of Ilabas which is led by Honorable Livelie Ann C. Grafane, and the Sibalom Tree-Planting Movement. The project manager is Von Steven L. Aquino, and the assistant project manager is Benjamen B. Evardone Jr.
The winners in the previous edition of the Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom, named Cubay Sermon 2008 – Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom, are the following: (1) Lou Vincent B. Baculna of District I, (2) Ryan A. Masulit of Esperanza II, (3) Rodolfo P. Puyong Jr. of Cubay Sermon, (4) Jessie C. Balen Jr. of Cubay Sermon, (5) John Laurence F. Gadayan of Maasin, (6) Ervin L. Burgos of District I, (7) Benjamen B. Evardone Jr. of Cubay Napultan, (8) Jasmin Rose O. Peligueras of District I, (9) Adomer M. Magbanua of Lacaron, (10) Paul John C. Tayo of Cubay Sermon.
With the first day of an edition of the Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom as the reference point, the not-yet-twenty-two-years-old among the winners in the previous edition automatically qualify as finalists. But Masulit have already reached the age of twenty-two years, and Evardone, though still young enough to participate in the Ilabas 2009 – Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom, will serve as the assistant project manager of the event. And so only eight of the ten winners in the Cubay Sermon 2008 – Pangpamatan-un nga Torneyo kang Chess sa Sibalom are eligible to participate in the upcoming event.
There will be seventeen finalists in the upcoming event, including three automatic finalists from Ilabas, the host-barangay of the upcoming event's last day.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Nick Contreras wins May 2009 Open


Nick Contreras wins the May 2009 Edition of the Open Chess Tournament held at the Alex and Al Cafe and Snackhouse, Sibalom, Antique. Provincial Master Contreras scored 4.5 points in this 5 round swiss system event. He defeated Senior Master Nelson Trayfalgar Jr. in an exciting game in the last round to emerge solo first. Provincial Master Edwin Leabriz finished solo second with 4 points from a 3-wins and 2-draws performance. Third place with 3 points apiece were Senior Master Trayfalgar and Provincial Master Von Steven Aquino. A total of 14 players participated.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Manny Pacquiao, the National Hero

It was a grand celebration for all Filipinos around the world yesterday when Boxing's pound for pound king Manny 'Pacman' Pacquiao demolished Ricky Hatton in one of boxing's most historic moments.

Watching the fight live via pay per view, I cant help but feel admiration for Manny Pacquiao. His entrance song, 'Pilipino ang lahi ko', sung by the Pacman himself, makes one proud to be a Filipino. His usual routine of kneeling down to pray every start of the fight shows that he is a man of faith. His humility is also worth noticing.

Pacquiao is indeed a national hero. If he runs for the Senate, I would surely vote for him. One thing, he do not need to be corrupt because of the, should I say, billions he has already earned from boxing. And one important thing is, he has the heart for every Filipino. The respected management guru Dr. Drucker wrote; "Integrity is better than Genius". This is very true indeed. We have always elected and placed on high Government the most educated, talented, bright people but still our country have gone down to one of the most corrupt in the world. Maybe it is high time now to put more emphasis on Integrity, Sincerity, and Dedication rather then Educational Attainment for our leaders. Manny Pacquiao surely would be a good candidate and leader.

On the other hand, this is a suggestion rather than a criticism. On the next Pacquiao match, whoever is to sing the Lupang Hinirang, please sing it just the way it is. Solemn and not much over arrangement.