MANILA, Philippines — Woman Grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna re-staked her claim as the country’s top lady player while rising Daniel Quizon emerged as the country’s new blitz king after they topped the Southeast Asian Games qualifier Tuesday night.
Frayna, 22, dominated the field and scored 77 points on 66 victories and 22 draws against 20 defeats in 110 games to rule her side of the event by a whopping 15.5 points with Woman FIDE Master Cherry Ann Mejia placing second with 61.5 points.
That sent Frayna into the final phase of the SEAG selection process set two weeks from now alongside Mejia and Woman International Master Bernadette Galas, who edged WFM Shania Mae Mendoza in the tiebreaker after the two finished tied with 56 points.
Frayna gained as high as 2319 rating in June last year, the highest ever reached by a Filipina, but poor showing the last few months dropped her rating to 2171.
“I’m thankful of the opportunity given to me and I hope I’ll get to represent the country in the SEA Games,” said Frayna, a Legazpi City native and an enlisted Army woman under Special Services Center director Col. Raymund Dante Lachica.
Quizon, who is turning 15 on Oct. 11, topped the men’s division with 56.5 points on 45 triumphs and 23 draws against 24 setbacks.
It was another impressive performance for Quizon, who is also coming off his conquest of the blitz event of the Asian Juniors last month.
Quizon, however, will have to skip the SEAG rapid qualifier beginning tomorrow at the PACE in North Avenue, Quezon City so he can defend the Eastern Asia Juniors chess crown in Thailand.