Philippines, 12 Feb 2026
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


ISTANBUL CHESS OLYMPIAD: PHILIPPINES TO PLAY AGAINST ROMANIA; PHL LADY CHESSERS GOES UP AGAINST BOZNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

PhilBoxing.com


Manila---Resurgent Philippines resumes its campaign in the 40th FIDE World Chess Olympiad when they battle dangerous Romania in the 11th and final round Sunday at the WOW Convention Center in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Filipinos drew their last matches against Southeast Asian rival Vietnam, 2-2, to vault into a share of 9th to 15th places in the open section before the tournament took a break Saturday.

Grandmaster Wesley So, the highest-rated Filipino with an Elo of 2652, and remains the only undefeated in the team after ten rounds and may still improve the individual performance if he?s going to win against GM Constantin Lupulesco (2614) using the disadvantageous black pieces on board 1.

GM Oliver Barbosa (2554) will meet GM Mircea-Emilian Parligras (2618) using the white pieces on board 2 while GM Eugene Torre (2649) will take GM Levente Vajda (2612) using the black pieces on board 3 and finally GM Mark Paragua (2508) will battle GM Vladislav Nevednichy (2554) using the white pieces on board 4.

Philippines has a good chance to stop Romania to increase its standing from its worst finish, 50th place in Khanty Mansiyk, Russia, 2010 Chess Olympiad, and a chance to break its 7th place record in 1988 Thessanloniki Greece Olympiad.

The 35th-seeded Filipinos have 14 points based on the scoring system that gives two points for a win, one point for a draw and zero for a loss.

"It's a make-or-break situation," said National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) executive director and head coach GM Jayson Gonzales.

The Filipinos open their campaign with a big bang blasting Libya (4-0), Moldova (2.5-1.5) and Kazakhstan ( 4-0) in the first three rounds. However lost to 2008 World Champion Armenia (1.5-2.5) in the fourth round. They beat Iceland (3-1) in the fifth, Bulgaria (2.5-1.5) in the sixth round before settling a draw with Hungary (2-2 ) in the seventh and upset England (3-1) in the eight round.

The Filipinos failed to continue their winning ways after losing to China (0.5-3.5) in what could be a battle of Asia's supremacy and had a chance to catch up No.1 Russia, No.3 Armenia and No.5 United States for the leadership board after the ninth round.

"If we beat China in the ninth round y'un sana ang turning point sa possible na coveted gold medal." said National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) Chairman/President Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr.

In women?s play, Woman International Master (WIM) Catherine Perena will try to steer the Philippines past No. 39 Boznia and Herzegovina.

Perena (2091) will square off with WIM Elena Boric (2319) on board 1, WNM Janelle Mae Fayna (1991) opposite WFM Aleksandra Dimitrijevic (2280) on board 2, WNM Jedara Docena versus WFM Dijana Dengler (2066) on board 3 and WNM Jan Jodilyn Frona (2061) will face Sanja Dedijer (2036) on board 4.

The 57th-seeded Filipinas have 11 points, a good for share 39th to 57th place. The women's team wind up 44th place in the last Olympiad is coming a 2-2 stand-off against Malaysia in the tenth round.




Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • Filipino Boxers Set for Action on Valentine's Day in Thailand
    By Carlos Costa, , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • Oklahoma Outplays LA Lakers, 119-110; Arrests Skid to Hold on to League Lead
    By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • Malaya Vibrations to play gig at 5th MFPI Mindanao Summit
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • Fight of the Night in Thailand: Ador Torres and Sairike Tuolewutayi Battle to a Thrilling Draw
    By Carlos Costa, , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • Young Australian Benji Birchell Claims Title Win in Thailand
    , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • Tickets for the Inaugural “Mike Tyson Invitational” Amateur Fight Night on Saturday, March 14, in Las Vegas Are on Sale Now
    , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • 2026 USA Boxing Men's Elite High Performance Team and Squad Rosters Announced
    , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • IIEE, SAEP shared lead, PIChE won 3rd in a row in the PTC WED NEMO Chess
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • The Ninth Annual Box Fan Expo RETURNS! Saturday May 2, 2026 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV
    , Wed, 11 Feb 2026
  • THE PAST WEEK IN ACTION 9 FEBRUARY 2026: Figueroa Stops Ball in 12; Medina Outpoints Curiel; Asanau, Unal Win in Montreal
    By Eric Armit, , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • Paradero gets a rematch against Francisco
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • Carcedo wins WBA Asia South super welterweight title
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • Shark attack in Florida Marco “El Tiburón” Romero Making waves on Feb. 19
    , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • 19-1 Albanian heavyweight Kristian Prenga returns on February 21 to Atlantic City
    , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • 2026 USA Boxing Elite High Performance Women's Team and Squad Rosters Announced
    , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • Filipino child prodigy Asher Judd Sy tops the 3rd King’s College Bangkok Chess Championship
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Tue, 10 Feb 2026
  • Chaos in Liverpool: Figueroa Silences Echo Arena with 12th-Round Fireworks
    By Dong Secuya, , Sun, 08 Feb 2026
  • Gabriel Santisima Stuns Unbeaten World Ranked and WBO Asia Pacific Champion Subaru Murata to Capture WBO Asia Pacific Title at Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
    , Sun, 08 Feb 2026
  • Lucky "Batang Quiapo" Salvador defeats Rhaky "Roj" Constantino
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Sun, 08 Feb 2026
  • Nick Ball vs Brandon Figueroa: Scrappy Styles Matchup in Liverpool
    By Chris Carlson, , Sat, 07 Feb 2026
  • Undefeated Middleweight Sebastian Juarez Returns to the Ring February 6 in Guadalajara
    , Fri, 06 Feb 2026
  • Esquillo, Arpilleda to compete at Lunar Horse Battle Royal 10-Ball Tournament at Pacman's Cue Club
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Fri, 06 Feb 2026
  • WEIGHTS AND RUNNING ORDER FOR MEDINA VS. CURIEL IN MEXICO, PLUS MAIN EVENT QUOTES
    , Fri, 06 Feb 2026
  • Rene Tellez Giron & Luis Torres Battle for Mexican Pride in 10-Round Main Event of ProBoxTV’s ‘The Contender Series’
    , Fri, 06 Feb 2026
  • Gomera and Ding are set to clash for the WBC Asia 126 belt
    By Carlos Costa, , Thu, 05 Feb 2026




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2026 philboxing.com.