TOUGH ROAD TO GRANDMASTER NORM BEGINS FOR MICIANO

John Marvin Miciano knows that the journey to become the next grandmaster in the mold of Wesley So is filled with challenging hurdles.

The youngest international master will begin his quest for the first of three GM norms in the Fide Asian Zone 3.3 championships scheduled April 6 to 16 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

“It’s my dream to become a GM like Wesley So and Eugene Torre. I would like put in my best effort and become like them if possible,” said Miciano.

The 18-year-old Asian Youth chess champion missed what could had been his first GM norm by just 0.5 points during the 22nd Hogeschool Zeeland Tournament in Vlissingen, Netherlands, August last year.

Miciano placed 12th out of 242 players in that tournament, just a month after he wound up 11th overall out of 105 partici- pants in the Open International De Sitges in Spain where majority of the entries were GMs and IMs.

“When I saw his credentials, I knew he has great potential to become a grandmaster,” said Go For Gold Philippines godfather Jeremy Go. “He deserves our support.”

According to Miciano, Go For Gold will support him in the long and difficult journey to secure the three GMnorms.

“I have to play in more international tournaments against highly-rated players,” said Miciano, who hails from Davao City.

Miciano will face Asia’s leading players in the Fide-rated meet in Mongolia, including top players from Vietnam and Indonesia.

It will also open a window of opportunity to showcase his skills against the best where Miciano can possibly gain a GM norm and rating points.