FILIPINO Grandmaster (GM) Mark Paragua upstaged Serbia’s GM Dusan Popovic to emerge champion in the recently concluded Andi Paula 1st Birthday Online Open Chess Tournament.

Paragua garnered a total of 50 points in 30 matches, beating Popovic who settled for the runner-up honors with 42 points in 33 games of the event sponsored by Andelson Berondo in celebration of his daughter Andi Paula’s first birthday.

Many-time Olympian Paragua, a head coach and co-founder of the New York Chess Academy, became a GM at age 20.

Filipinos international master (IM) Daniel Quizon and Fide Master (FM) Sander Severino, International Physically Disabled Chess Association (Ipca) World Online Chess Championship 2020 champion, grabbed the third and fourth places, respectively.

Quizon registered 40 points in 36 matches while Severino tallied 38 points in 37 outings in the meet played via lichess.org

The top four players received cash prizes of 4,000, P2,000, P1,400 and P700.

The champion was unbeaten after eking out 20 wins and 10 draws in the chessfest that drew a total of 68 players here and abroad.

National Master (NM) Bob Jones Liwagon came fifth with 36 points while NM Merben Roque edged fellow 35-pointer John Ranel Morazo via superior tiebreaks to grab the sixth spot. The latter ended up at seventh.

Rounding up the top 10 were India’s Anadkat Kartavya (34 points), and Filipinos IM Jan Emmanuel Garcia (31) and Ellan Asuela (30). They also received cash prizes.

GMs Darwin Laylo (30) and Joey Antonio (27) finished 11th and 12th, respectively, even as Panabo City’s arena grandmaster (AGM) Henry Roger Lopez (25) placed 16th followed by Davao del Sur’s NM Elwin Retanal (24) at 17th

WGM Janelle Mae Frayna, who earned 21 points, was top lady player while Jay Bacojo (24) romped away with the top kiddie U14 title. Each claimed P200.