Barbosa, Gomez draw; keep India chess lead

STANDINGS 7TH RD:

6.5 pts — GM John Paul Gomez (Philippines), GM Oliver Barbosa (Philippines)

6.0 pts — GM Mark Paragua (Philippines), GM Andrei Deviatkin (Russia), GM Evgeny Gleizerov (Russia), IM Das Debashis (India), IM Rathnakaran K (India)

FILIPINO Grandmasters Oliver Barbosa and John Paul Gomez agreed to draw their seventh-round match yesterday to remain tied for the lead in the 10th Parsvnath International Open Chess Tournament 2012 at Ludlow Castle Sports Complex, Civil Lines in New Delhi, India.

Barbosa and Gomez both tallied 6.5 points in the 11-round, Swiss system tournament.

“A draw is fine, so John Paul and Oliver both have a chance to win the coveted title,” said National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) Chairman/President Prospero “Butch” Pichay Jr.

GM Mark Paragua, on the other hand, routed Zeng Chongsheng of China to pad his tally to 6.0 points good for a five-way tie for third place together with GMs Andrei Deviatkin and Evgeny Gleizerov of Russia and International Masters Das Debashis and Rathnakaran K of India.

Meanwhile, another Filipino entry GM Richard Bitoon drew with Prince Bajaj of India to raise his total to 4.5 points, good for a share of 46th to 85th spots.

In the eighth round, Barbosa battles Deviatkin on Board 1, Gomez plays Paragua on Board 2 while Bitoon goes up against Karthikeyan Murali of India on Board 27.

The Pinoys’ India chess campaign is part of the Philippine Team’s preparation for this year’s 38th World Chess Olympiad in Istanbul, Turkey.