Chess player Le Quang Liem (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam’s top chess player, LeQuang Liem, defeated Andyka Pitra of Indonesia in HCM City on March 12 duringthe first round of the masters category of the seventh HDBank Cup InternationalOpen Chess tournament 2017.
The 25-year-old Liem, with an Elo rating of 2712, is No 2 seedat the event. He will battle teammate Vo Thanh Ninh in the next round.
Liem’s top rival, Wei Yi of China (Elo 2725), also beat Tu HoangThong of Vietnam. Yi will next meet Diu Viacheslave of Russia.
Also, Bu Xiangzhi of China bested his teammate Li Yankai.Xiangzhi will take on Cao Sang of Vietnam.
Although having the same one point but a difference on theauxiliary index, Yi temporarily took the lead in this division, followed by Liemand Xiangzhi.
Additionally, Vietnam players Tran Tuan Minh defeated KathmaleSameer of India, Le Tuan Minh defeated Le Thanh Tu and Nguyen Anh Khoi won overTran Ngoc Lan.
Vietnamese player Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son withdrew from thecompetition because of sickness.
In the Challengers category, Duong Thuong Cong of Vietnamtemporarily topped the rankings after defeating teammate Vu Ba Khoi.
The event, which will offer a largest-ever bonus of 45,000 USD,will take place from March 12-17 in HCM City, with the participation of 230players from 24 countries and territories.-VNA
VNA
