Cebuanos elated with plan to add chess in Olympics

Cebu’s chess enthusiasts are delighted by the move of the chess governing body on its continued push for Olympic inclusion.

The International Chess Federation (Fide) has launched a campaign on Tuesday, Feb. 12 for the game to be included in the 2024 Paris Olympics after a failed bid by chess officials for inclusion in the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games.

“I’m happy and overjoyed in that news. If realized, then we Filipinos now have a solid chance to bag our very first gold medal in the Olympics. Chess is a sport that doesn’t require height or build which we don’t naturally have,” Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association (Cepca) president Jerry Maratas told SunStar Cebu.

“Also, we are known to have great minds which is highly needed in a game of chess,” added Maratas, who’s an engineer by profession.

Fide called for faster formats of traditional chess, called rapid and blitz, to be included in the Olympic program.

For Edilberto Velarde if the campaign will be materialized it will be a victory in the whole chess community. According to Fide’s statement, chess has 189 national federations and 600 million people practice chess globally.

Velarde, who plays chess and is also the father of chess prodigy John Jerish, thinks that the success of chess in the regional level can help push the goal of reaching the Olympics.

“If chess will be successful in the Southeast Asian (Sea) Games, it will help a lot in pushing chess as part of the Olympics,” he said.

Velarde said that including chess in the Olympics is long overdue. He admitted he was saddened it was disapproved on its attempt since chess is categorized as a board game not as a sport.

“The Fide officers should push more since chess nowadays is more than a board game,” he said.

Maratas said that in a local scale, Cepca is willing to support a program to strengthen the chance of the youth to get to big events.

Filipino Super grand master Wesley So, who’s currently representing the US, is one of the world’s top players.

“(Wesley So) is still a Filipino by blood and heart. Our government just needs to do something to entice him to represent the country. I believe he’s willing to represent the country (if chess will be included in the Olympics),” said Maratas. /