MANILA – Filipino Diego Abraham Caparino defeated Siya Sagar of India in the second round to keep his share of the lead in the 22nd Bangkok Chess Club Open at the Royal Orchid Sheraton Riverside Hotel in Thailand.
The 29-year-old player from Cebu City has earned two points.
“I hope to sustain my momentum,” said Caparino on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, as he prepares for his third round match.
Other Filipinos with two points are International Masters Paulo Bersamina and Michael Concio Jr., FIDE Master Christian Gian Karlo Arca, and Marc Kevin Labog.
Bersamina beat Tom Barbe of Belgium, Concio downed compatriot Tyrhone James Tabernilla, Arca defeated Haoxuan Zhang of China, and Labog prevailed over Huy Hoang Le of Vietnam.
Filipino FM Robert Suelo, the 1996 national junior champion who is now head coach of the Laos chess team, downed Suyog Bagul Aaradhya of Singapore to also gain a share of the lead along with top seed GM Jan Gustafsson of Germany, third seed GM Evgeny Romanov of Macedonia, fourth seed GM Surya Shekhar Ganguly of India, fifth seed GM Vitaliy Bernadskiy of Ukraine, sixth seed GM Babu M R Lalit of India and seventh seed GM Stephen J Gorgon of England.
Gustafsson whipped FM Myat Aung Kyaw of Myanmar, Romanov downed Vo Quoc Bao Tran of Vietnam, Ganguly beat Ron Hoffman of the Netherlands, Bernadskiy trounced Erik Tam of Canada, Llait beat Filipino NM Phil Martin Casiguran, and Gordon defeated FM Ko Ohn Ko of Myanmar.
Second seed and former world championship challenger GM Nigel Short of England drew with Yasseen De Herdt of Belgium, while Filipino Almario Marlon Quiroz Bernardino Jr., a US chess master, bounced back from his first-round loss with a victory over Nakorn Nakthip of Thailand.
Meanwhile, Woman NM Arvie Lozano, John Paul De Guzman, Remark Bartolome, John Lance Valencia, and James Henry Calacday won their second round matches to share the lead in the Challengers division. / PNA