Panamanian chess defines its champions by categories

With a record number of participants, the National Category Championship 2024 ended with an unprecedented victory of FIDE Master and also number one in Central America, Ashley Castillo, after six rounds played, at the Combat Center of Irving Saladino Sports City, located in Juan Diaz.

In this tournament, organized by the Panamanian Chess Federation, led by Luis Esquivel, with the support of Pandeportes, 285 players registered to compete in the categories under 8, under 10, under 12, under 14, under 16 -18, in men’s and women’s branches.

In the absolute under-18 category, women and men played together, so Castillo’s result is extremely important, since he also dominated the men’s category at the end of six rounds, in which he was followed by FIDE master André Méndez and Sebastián Schnell. In the ladies, Luany Tapia and Laila Caicedo also shone, in the same number of rounds.

The competition started last Wednesday with the participation of players from all provinces, said Esquivel, who stressed the importance of these events for the popularization of this discipline.

In the under-16 category, the absolute champion was Rion Okuno Okuno, followed by Adrian Miranda and Mario Castillo. Mariana Lobo was one of the most prominent in the women’s competition.

After six rounds, in the 14-year-old group, the winner was José Rodríguez, accompanied by Carlos Albornoz and Adrián Cortés. In the women’s category, Keytleen Chavarría, Heidly Calderón and Marinela Cruz stood out.

The award was also given to the category under 12 years old, where Oscar Amelunge, Camilo Castiblanco and Jhonny Liu stood out. In the women’s category, Nicole Serrano, Victoria Quiroz and Lily García dominated. In the 10-year-old group, Emmanuel Roa, Juan Vázquez and Giuseppe Antinori were among the most outstanding; while in the women’s category honors were won by Gabriela Atencio, Britto Bárbara and Nikeisha Gordon.

Finally, in the 8-year-old group, Emmanuel Cornejo, Justo Cebrian and Erick Quiroz stood out the most, taking first, second and third place.

It should be noted that the champions of each female and male category will represent Panama at the Pan American Championships of those categories as well as at the World Championships.

Equivel also highlighted the support he received from the director of Pandeportes, Denis Arce, to break the registration record for this tournament.

The 2024 National Category Championship is consolidated as a key event in the Panamanian chess calendar, which has hosted several world-class events in recent months.