EARNING a grand master (GM) title remains the goal of Dabawenyo chess international master (IM) John Marvin Miciano.
This, despite returning home to Davao City and enrolling at Ateneo de Davao University as a college Computer Science freshman student.
The decorated 19-year-old player earned his IM title after he emerged as open under-18 champion of the Asian Youth Championship at the Lotus Pang Suan Kaew Hotel in Chang Mai, Thailand in April 2018. The title was conferred to him only after several months by Fide, the world governing body of chess.
He earned his IM title and Fide master titles at age 17 after earning his national master (NM) title at 16. All these milestones he achieved while playing as a varsity scholar at the Far Eastern University (FEU) under the tutelage of GM Jayson Gonzales.
"My focus is still the same, more of preparation for standard chess tournaments, na over the board, and hopefully I can attain my GM title. As of this year na all over the board tournaments in standard are cancelled, I have to make myself productive by enrolling in college," he told Sunstar Davao in a Facebook Messenger interview Wednesday, July 22.
His FM title was awarded to him after topping the 2017 Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2017 in Malaysia in January 2017 just barely a month after he earned his NM title in December 2016 following his championship victory in the 2016 Philippine International Open Challenger Division at the Subic Bay Peninsular Hotel.
Miciano, a consistent UAAP chess gold medalist in High School, said he asked permission from FEU first semester of 2018 that he will leave to pursue his GM title dream abroad.
He said, "Last December 2018, I had to make a decision, yong decision na mag training at mag campaign ako sa abroad to work out for GM title, so hindi na ako nag nag-enroll ng second sem January 2019."
But due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, and on the board chess tournaments were cancelled all over the world and shifted to online, Miciano is staying in the country for the rest of the year. He will push through with his GM dream journey abroad once a Covid-19 vaccine is available.
While he is still catching up with his classes being a late enrollee, he continues his online chess training with his personal coach. He also continues to practice in online sparring with various chess masters.
He is among the athletes cited in the 26th So Kim Cheng Sports Awards set July 22 And 23 for his impressive feats the past year, including winning one gold, three silvers and one bronze for the country in the Asean+ Age-Group Chess Championships and topping the Philippine qualifying tournament of the Asian Junior Online Chess 2020-Zone 3.3. He also copped a silver in Eastern Asia Junior Chess Championship.