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Cebu’s National Science High School lacks funds to pay for electricity

THE CEBU CITY National Science High School (CCNSHS) upgraded its facilities to cater to the demands of the implementation of the K-12 program. But technology needs electricity and the school does not have enough money to pay for its ballooning power consumption. Last June 19, the school’s principal, Dr. Evelyn R. Pielago, told Councilor Joy Augustus G. Young that the school owes the Visayan Electric Company, Inc. P369,984.23. “Our electrical consumption increases… for the past years,” Ms. Pielago said. She noted that the school, with more than 900 students in junior and senior high school, only has a P95,000 budget for maintenance and other operating expenses, which covers janitorial services, utilities, internet connection, office supplies, and trainings and seminars for teachers, among others. Mr. Young, for his part, said the city is willing to help and in fact used to subsidize the school’s electricity bill. However, this was stopped after the Commission on Audit questioned the expense. The councilor said the situation at CCNSHS should be a wake-up call for the Department of Education, which implemented the K-12 program despite the lack of budget and classrooms, among others. — The Freeman

Taxis to start plying Zamboanga City streets as council calls for hiring of traffic expert

KATHY WEE SIT VIA BENG CLIMACO FB PAGE

TAXIS OPERATED by Asia’s Latin City Transport Services Cooperative will start plying Zamboanga City streets on June 25 following the release of its franchise by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board. “Now we already have the franchise so we can start taxi operation,” said the cooperative’s chairman, Chairman Jerson Monteverde, during a media briefing earlier this week. The launching of taxi services in the city was pushed by the local government and the Department of Tourism.
TRAFFIC
Meanwhile, the city council has called on the local administration to hire a traffic expert who can help solve the worsening traffic problem. “The immediate solution now is to hire someone who is trained and know how to manage traffic with a scientific approach,” said Councilor Miguel C. Alavar III. Mr. Alavar said the council has passed more than 30 resolutions related to the traffic congestions, but some of these were not considered by the city government. “Among the resolutions passed by the council was asking for additional traffic aides and traffic lights in the major intersections of the city,” he said. — Albert F. Arcilla

Moro boat tradition

Brightly colored ancient Moro boats called ginakit are paraded at Sarangani Bay in Malapatan as part of the 13th Pakaradyan Festival and the town’s 49th founding anniversary, celebrated from June 19-21. The ginakit was a main mode of transportation for Muslim royals and tribal chieftains around the inland waters of Mindanao during the pre-colonial and Spanish periods. Malapatan is known for the inaul hand-woven Maguindanaoan fiber and home of Bai Estelita Bantilan, a Blaan mat weaver, who was proclaimed a National Living Treasure last year. The town’s name comes from the ethnic Blaan words Malah and fatan, which means a place where pepper is abundant.

Nation at a Glance — (06/21/18)

News stories from across the nation. Visit www.bworldonline.com (section: The Nation) to read more national and regional news from the Philippines.

Phoenix keeps flickering PBA playoff hopes alive

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Phoenix Fuel Masters snapped out of a telling four-game losing streak yesterday, defeating the GlobalPort Batang Pier, 135-108, to keep their flickering playoff hopes in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup alive.
Now at 4-6 with one game left to play in the elimination round, the Fuel Masters need to win their last game and hope other teams on the fringes of the playoff picture fall short to get at least a shot at the eighth and final spot via a playoff.
In beating GlobalPort, Phoenix used an explosive opening quarter to create some distance and just kept its opponent at bay the rest of the way en route to the victory.
Phoenix raced to a 9-2 lead in the first two minutes of the contest before GlobalPort narrowed its deficit to just four points, 17-13, in the next five minutes.
A 9-0 blast by the Fuel Masters, led by Matthew Wright and import Eugene Phelps, extended their lead to 13 points, 26-13, at the 3:16 mark.
They continued to build on it thereafter, outscoring the Batang Pier for the remainder of the opening quarter, 15-9, to hold a 41-22 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
In the second canto, GlobalPort tried to make up for lost real estate.
But the Fuel Masters were not a willing party to what Batang Pier wanted to do, matching everything the latter threw at them.
By the halftime break, Phoenix continued to hold sway, 70-51.
The onslaught continued for Phoenix to start the third quarter as Mr. Wright and JC Intal found the mark from beyond the arc.
The count stood at 89-56, with Phoenix on top, midway into the frame.
The Fuel Masters stretched their lead to 36 points, 97-61, with 3:28 to go before settling for a 107-77 lead heading into the final quarter.
GlobalPort started the fourth period with a jacked-up defensive stance and more aggressiveness on offense, allowing it to cut Phoenix’s lead to 109-88 after two and a half minutes.
Phoenix though would establish order anew, padding its cushion to 28 points, 116-88, at the eighth-minute mark.
GlobalPort tried to recover from the Phoenix recoil after but it hardly made headway on that front as it saw itself slump to the defeat.
Mr. Phelps led Phoenix with a triple-double of 37 points, 23 rebounds and 10 assists.
Mr. Wright had 24 points before fouling out while Jason Perkins had 13 and RJ Jazul 11.
GlobalPort (4-5), meanwhile, was led by Malcolm White with 24 points and Sean Anthony and Stanley Pringle finishing with 15 and 14 points, respectively.
“I guess we are still alive. But more than that, I hope this is a start of something big for us moving forward,” said Phoenix coach Louie Alas after their win.
Phoenix will have a long break before its big match against the Alaska Aces on July 6 where it hopes to get the win and possibly secure a spot for a playoff for a place in the quarterfinals while GlobalPort next plays on June 22 against Columbian Dyip.

Russia beats Egypt to close in on last 16 slot

SAINT PETERSBURG — Host nation Russia have one foot in the last 16 of the World Cup after a resounding 3-1 win over Egypt on Tuesday despite the return from injury of Mohamed Salah.
After a tight first half in a rain-drenched Saint Petersburg, Egypt captain Ahmed Fathy scored an own goal before goals from Denis Cheryshev and Artem Dzyuba sealed a win that raises Russian hopes of defying pre-tournament expectations that they would struggle to qualify from their group.
Salah did score Egypt’s first goal at a World Cup since 1990 with a penalty after he had been hauled down 17 minutes from time, but it was too late to regain the momentum for the disappointing Pharaohs.
Russia will be guaranteed a place in the last 16 and Egypt eliminated unless Saudi Arabia beat Uruguay on Wednesday.
Salah was making his first appearance since injuring his left shoulder when falling heavily after being dragged to the ground by Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos in the Champions League final just over three weeks ago.
Russia thrashed a poor Saudi Arabia team 5-0 in the tournament opener last week, but Egypt had been expected to pose a stiffer challenge.
But after Fathi put into his own net, an inspired Cheryshev slotted in his third goal of the tournament, putting him equal with Cristiano Ronaldo in the top scorers’ chart.
Dzyuba’s third goal sent the 65,000-capacity crowd into raptures.
JAPAN MILESTONE
Japan made history in the early game, beating 10-man Colombia 2-1 to become the first Asian side to conquer a South American team at a World Cup.
The complexion of the game was changed radically when Colombia’s Carlos Sanchez was shown the first red card of Russia 2018 for handball in the opening minutes of the contest.
Shinji Kagawa scored from the penalty spot and although Juan Quintero equalized late in the first half, Japan made their superior numbers count, with Yuya Osako heading a winner in the 73rd minute.
Japan’s build-up to Russia has been tumultuous after coach Vahid Halilhodzic was sacked in April and replaced by Akira Nishino, despite steering the team to the finals.
But they will be delighted to start their Russian campaign with a victory after failing to notch a single win in Brazil four years ago — including a painful 4-1 defeat at the hands of Colombia.
“I said at halftime that if we can keep the ball moving, we can deprive the Colombia players of their stamina,” said Nishino.
“Our players were aggressive from the start and I think that worked very well for us. This is just one win and three points, so we will save our celebration.”
SENEGAL PIP POLAND
In the other Group H clash on Tuesday, Senegal recorded the first African win at this World Cup when they beat Poland 2-1, thanks to a deflected Thiago Cionek own goal and a terrible error by Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, which resulted in a goal for man-of-the-match Mbaye Niang.
West Bromwich Albion midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak got Poland back in the game with an 86th-minute minute header but Senegal hung on at Moscow’s Spartak Stadium.
In a match billed as a straight fight between Robert Lewandowski and Sadio Mane, neither scored but Liverpool striker Mane set up Idrissa Gueye for the shot that took a wicked deflection off Cionek, leaving Szczesny totally wrong-footed in the Polish goal for Senegal’s opener on 37 minutes.
Senegal coach Aliou Cisse said the whole of Africa was closely monitoring the progress of Senegal.
“Senegal today represents the whole of the African continent,” he said.
“Of course we represent our country but I can also guarantee that the whole of Africa is supporting us. I’m getting phone calls from everywhere.” — AFP

In-form Portugal star Ronaldo looms over Morocco while Spain faces Iran

ROSTOV-ON-DON, RUSSIA — Cristiano Ronaldo will hone in on Morocco on Wednesday after his stunning hat-trick in Portugal’s World Cup opener, while 2010 winner Spain plays Iran in Group B.
The five-time world player of the year bagged a sublime treble against Spain in the heat of Sochi on Friday in Russia 2018’s stand-out match so far, the 51st of his glittering career.
“I’m very happy, it’s a nice personal record to have, one more in my career,” Ronaldo said on Tuesday.
“For me the most important thing is to emphasize what the team did against one of the favorites to win this World Cup.”
Spain heads to Kazan to face Iran still counting the cost of a chaotic run-up to the tournament during which Julen Lopetegui was sensationally sacked just two days before they opened their campaign.
Former international defender Fernando Hierro is now at the helm but barely a week into the tournament Spain — expected to join Brazil, Germany and France in the latter stages — have endured more drama than they would have wanted or expected.
“It’s a crucial match that will determine our World Cup destiny,” said midfielder Isco of the Iran showdown.
“We want to score from the opening minute, even though that won’t be easy.”
Iran kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 win against Morocco, thanks to a late own goal by Aziz Bouhaddouz, piling the pressure on Spain at Kazan Arena on Wednesday.
Iran sit top of the pile as the only Group B team with a win so far, an achievement that sparked widespread celebrations in the streets of Tehran and elsewhere throughout the Islamic republic.
Coach Carlos Queiroz concedes Iran now face one of the biggest challenges in their World Cup history, but maintains they can “make the impossible possible.”
“If the game against Morocco was the World Cup final for us, the game against Spain will be the Universe Cup final,” said the former Real Madrid coach.
Iran have never beaten a European side at a World Cup — their only previous victory was a 2-1 win over the United States in France in 1998.
Morocco need to bounce back from their agonizing defeat against Iran but Portugal and Ronaldo in particular pose Herve Renard’s men a monumental challenge at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium.
“We lost a battle but we haven’t lost the war. We’re not dead,” said midfielder Faycal Fajr, one of 17 foreign-born players in Morocco’s squad.
100 UP FOR SUAREZ
Uruguay take on Saudi Arabia in Wednesday’s other game, with forward Luis Suarez set to mark his 100th appearance for the Celeste in the Group A clash in Rostov-on-Don.
The Barcelona man has exited the last two World Cups in disgrace after being sent off for a goal-line handball against Ghana and he infamously sank his teeth into Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini in 2014.
The game itself should be straightforward for Uruguay, who won their opener 1-0 against a Mohamed Salah-less Egypt, as they face a Saudi Arabia team hammered 5-0 by hosts Russia in the tournament’s curtain-raiser.
The Saudis’ preparations were jolted by a mid-air mishap on Monday when the plane carrying them to Rostov suffered a fire in one of its engines.
The aircraft landed safely after what one of the Saudi players called a “simple malfunction”.
Hosts Russia stand on the verge of the knockout stages after Tuesday’s 3-1 win over Egypt in Saint Petersburg.
After a goalless first half, Ahmed Fathi scored an own goal before Denis Cheryshev struck and Artem Dzyuba added a third. Salah scored a consolation penalty late on but it was not enough for the Pharaohs.
Earlier, Senegal secured a first win for an African nation at this tournament, benefiting from a terrible error from Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny to beat Poland 2-1 in Moscow.
Tuesday’s other Group H clash saw Japan come out surprise winners against 10-man Colombia after midfielder Carlos Sanchez received the tournament’s first red card for a handball minutes into the game. — AFP

Moraes, Eustaquio expect tough battle in ONE unification bout in Macau

BRAZILIAN Adriano “Mikinho” Moraes and Filipino Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio lock horns anew in ONE Championship as they battle in a flyweight unification bout this weekend in Macau, China.
Nearly four years since they first fought in the ONE cage, the two fighters reengage at “ONE: Pinnacle of Power” happening on June 23 at the Studio City Event Center in a unification fight serving as a co-main event with the women’s strawweight title encounter between reigning champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan of China and challenger Laura “La Gladiadora” Balin of Argentina.
And both Mr. Moraes, the reigning ONE champion, and Mr. Eustaquio, the interim champ, are expecting to have it tough in their reencounter, enhanced further by the high-stakes setting it is in.
“Geje Eustaquio has earned the highest level of my respect. If anything, there is no chance of me underestimating him. That would be unwise. We’ve all seen his improvement as a martial artist,” said Mr. Moraes (17-2), who won over Team Lakay’s Eustaquio first time around in September 2014 by way of submission (guillotine choke) in the second round.
“I am preparing for the best Geje Eustaquio possible, and that is the only way I can prepare to be at my best. I believe this match is going to be a battle between two top-notch martial artists. It is going to be a battle from start to finish,” he added.
For Mr. Eustaquio (10-6), he said that the burden of proof is on him in his upcoming fight, which is why he is very determined to come out victorious in his second go at Mr. Moraes.
“There were lots of trials and challenges. My path was not the easiest, but I always knew what I had to do to achieve it. Like I always say, it’s either you win or you learn. I learned from my past failures. And here I am today. That’s the secret to my success,” Mr. Eustaquio said in the lead-up to Pinnacle of Power.
Now the interim champion, Mr. Eustaquio said the goal is to become the undisputed king of flyweight in ONE Championship.
“On June 23, I have a tough task in front of me. However, it is still an opportunity for me, an opportunity that comes once in a lifetime. On that date, it’s my opportunity to become the undisputed champion of this division. And I am coming for it,” he added.
“That loss [against Moraes] has taught me a lot. Ever since then, I have worked extensively in improving in all areas. I have worked extremely hard to get to this point because deep inside, I knew we would meet again. Now I can finally give him a better fight,” Mr. Eustaquio added.
Entering the contest, Mr. Moraes is coming off a successful title defense against Eustaquio’s stable mate Danny Kingad in November last year where he won by submission (rear-naked choke) in the opening round.
Mr. Eustaquio, meanwhile, last fought in January this year where he defeated former flyweight champion Kairat Akhmetov of Russia by unanimous decision and earned for him the interim title.
Also seeing action at Pinnacle of Power are Filipinos Kingad against Mao Hao Bin of China in a flyweight battle, and Edward Kelly versus Narantungalag Jadambaa of Cambodia in a featherweight clash. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Bahamas’ teen giant DeAndre Ayton eyes top pick in NBA Draft

NEW YORK — Towering Bahamian teenager DeAndre Ayton is poised to be chosen with the top pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday, with the Phoenix Suns set to snap up the 7ft. center who compares himself to Shaquille O’Neal.
Barring a major shock, the 19-year-old Ayton is widely expected to be selected by the Suns, who finished the season propping up the Western Conference with a dismal record of 21 wins against 61 defeats, the worst record in the NBA.
Ayton, a dominant force in college basketball last season for the University of Arizona Wildcats, is seen as the closest thing the draft gets to a sure thing.
The teen has already impressed the Suns during a workout, with general manager Ryan McDonough describing the youngster as a rare but raw talent.
“I think this is my 16th draft in the NBA and you could probably count on one hand the number of guys with his size, athleticism, footwork, balance, touch,” McDonough told The Los Angeles Times.
Ayton, who turns 20 next month, is certain that he’ll be the first pick in the annual selection of top college talent by NBA teams.
“I know I’m going no. 1,” Ayton told a press conference earlier this month.
Standing at 7ft. (2.13m.) tall and weighing in at 260 pounds (117kg.), Ayton has earned comparisons to Los Angeles Lakers legend O’Neal — and he is happy to measure himself up against the four-time NBA Finals champion.
In fact, Ayton believes he could form a partnership in Phoenix with Devin Booker similar to the Lakers’ famous O’Neal-Kobe Bryant double-act which dominated the NBA.
Ayton’s self-assurance, and certainty that he will be picked first, has not endeared him to other top prospects in the draft, however.
Duke University big man Marvin Bagley, who is expected to be one of the top three picks, believes he should be above Ayton in the pecking order.
“People could take it how they want, but I know DeAndre, we’re both competitive, but at the end of the day we both play this game to be the best,” Bagley told Sports Illustrated this week. — AFP

Three in a row for Shankland

13th American Continental Championship
Montevideo, Uruguay
June 1-10, 2018

Final Top Standings
1. GM Samuel Shankland USA 2717, 9.0/11
2. GM Diego Flores ARG 2614, 8.5/11
3-9. IM Pablo Salinas Herrera CHI 2463, GM Sandro Mareco ARG 2643, IM Brian Sebasti Escalante Ramirez PER 2422, GM Jorge Cori PER 2659, IM Kevin Joel Cori Quispe PER 2468, GM Robert Hungaski USA 2510, GM Emilio Cordova PER 2621, 8.0/11
10-21. IM Guillermo Vazquez PAR 2436, IM Tomas Sosa ARG 2453, GM Felipe De Cresce El Debs BRA 2537, GM Jose Eduardo Martinez Alcantara PER 2539, GM Neuris Delgado Ramirez PAR 2613, GM Cristhian Cruz PER 2576, GM Jeffery Xiong USA 2656, GM Sergey Erenburg USA 2563, GM Awonder Liang USA 2571, IM Diego Rafael Di Berardino BRA 2525, GM Alan Pichot ARG 2564, GM Sevag Mekhitarian Krikor BRA 2546, 7.5/11
Total of 167 participants
Time Control: 90 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 30 minutes for the rest of the game with 30 seconds added to your time after every move starting move 1.
GM Samuel Shankland won his last two games to take solo first place in the American Continental Championship. This was his third consecutive tournament victory after winning the USA Championship (ahead of the triumvirate of Fabiano Caruana, Wesley so and Hikaru Nakamura, all world top-10 players) and the Capablanca Memorial. He is now ranked no. 27 in the world with a rating of 2727, which is why some people are now calling him “Triple 27.”
The top four finishers of the American Continental were to be awarded automatic slots to the 2019 Khanty-Mansiysk World Cup. GMs Shankland and Diego Flores got the first two slots. The seven players who tied for third place had to play a single round-robin tiebreak tournament with a 15 minute (with 10 seconds added after every move) to determine who gets the other two slots. After seven rounds of play GMs Jorge Cori and Emilio Cordova, both from Peru, qualified.
In the tournament proper it was a great fight between the USA’s Shankland and Argentina’s 35-year-old GM Diego Flores, who was in brilliant form. After four wins and a draw in the first five rounds he engaged Shankland in a tactical fight.

Flores, Diego (2614) — Shankland, Samuel (2717) [E54]
American Continental-ch 2018 Montevideo (6), 05.06.2018

1.c4 e6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 0–0 5.Bd3 d5 6.Nf3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 c5 8.0–0 cxd4 9.exd4 b6 10.Bg5 Bb7 11.Rc1
There is a big debate here whether White’s rooks belong on c1 and d1 or d1 and e1. We won’t go into that now but one day we will.
11…Nc6
[11…Nbd7 is the usual move here so as not to block his rook when it gets to c8. But anyway Nc6 also has its adherents, putting additional pressure on white’s isolated d-pawn]
12.a3
[12.d5 Na5! 13.Ne4 is well met by 13…Be7! (Speelman) (not 13…exd5? 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Bxd5± Bxd5? 16.Qxd5 Qxd5 17.Nxf6+) 14.d6 Bxe4 15.dxe7 Qxe7 Black is simply a pawn up, which is why White withdraws his bishop to a2 first before pushing the d-pawn]
12…Be7 13.Ba2 Rc8 14.Re1 h6 15.Bh4 Nh5 16.Bg3 Nxg3 17.hxg3 Bf6 18.d5! exd5 19.Nxd5 Bxb2 20.Rc2 Bxa3 21.Rd2 Bc5 22.Nc3 Qc7 23.Rd7 Qb8 <D>
POSITION AFTER 23…QB8
Flores’ next move was a big surprise.
24.Ng5!? Nd8
What happens after 24…hxg5? At first glance White wins with 25.Qh5 Ne5 26.Rxe5 Qxe5 27.Rxf7! (27.Bxf7+ Rxf7 28.Qxf7+ the pawn on g7 is covered) 27…Bd5 (27…Rxf7?? 28.Qxf7+ Kh8 29.Qh5#) 28.Bxd5 Qxd5 29.Rxf8+ Rxf8 30.Nxd5 White is clearly winning.
Black has a saving tactical shot though. After 24…hxg5 25.Qh5 Ne5 26.Rxe5 he can force a draw with 26…Bxf2+! 27.Kxf2 Qxe5 28.Bxf7+ (28.Rxf7?? Qd4+ 29.Kf1 (29.Ke1 Qxc3+ 30.Kf1 Qa1+) 29…Ba6+ Black mates) 28…Rxf7+ 29.Qxf7+ Kh8 30.Qh5+ draw via perpetual check.
25.Nge4 Rc7?
[25…Kh8]
26.Qg4?
A pity that Flores missed 26.Nf6+! gxf6 (Black is forced to accept the sacrifice. If 26…Kh8 27.Qd3 g6 28.Bxf7! wins for White) 27.Qg4+ Kh8 28.Qf5 Rxd7 29.Bb1 Black can only prevent mate at huge material loss.
26…Rxd7 27.Nf6+ Kh8 28.Qf5
[28.Nxd7 Bc8!]
28…g6 29.Qh3 Bxf2+! 30.Kxf2
[30.Kh1 Kg7 31.Nxd7 Qc8 32.Rf1 Re8 Black is winning as well]
30…Rd2+ 31.Ke3 Qe5+ 32.Nce4
[32.Kxd2 Qd4+ then he takes the knight on f6.]
32…Qd4+ 0–1
[32…Qd4+ 33.Kf4 Rf2+ 34.Kg4 Bc8+ wins the queen]
To his great credit the Argentinian GM shrugged off the loss and won his next three games to tie for the lead with GM Shankland, two rounds to go. You’d think that GM Sam would play cautiously so as not to jeopardize qualifying for the World Cup. But that’s not his thing.

Xiong, Jeffery (2656) — Shankland, Samuel (2717) [B90]
American Continental-ch 2018 Montevideo (10), 09.06.2018

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6
Yup! Shankland chooses to make his own luck and counters with the Sicilian Najdorf.
6.h3 g6 7.g4 Bg7 8.Be3 0–0 9.Qd2 b5 10.Bg2
A tactical motif that White has to look out for is 10.0–0–0 Bb7 11.f3 Nbd7 12.h4 Rc8 13.h5 b4 14.Nce2 e5 15.Nb3 Nxe4! 16.fxe4 Bxe4 with an attack on c2 and h1. Amonatov,F (2632)-Debashis,D (2496) Bhubaneswar 2017 0–1 37.
10…Bb7 11.a3
From the looks of the result of this game and others perhaps it is more prudent for White to castle kingside. After 11.0–0 Nfd7 (Not agreeing to the complications of 11…Nbd7 12.e5 dxe5 13.Ne6!? Mokry,K (2485)-Georgiev,K (2590) Warsaw 1987 1/2 18.) 12.a4 bxa4 13.Rxa4 Nc5 14.Ra3 Nbd7 15.b4 Ne6 we still have a big fight ahead of us but White is doing fine. Santos Latasa,J (2263)-Dastan,B (2087) Porto Carras 2010 1–0 46.
11…Nbd7 12.g5 Nh5 13.Bf3 Ne5 14.Bxh5 gxh5 15.0–0–0 Rc8 16.Kb1 Rxc3!
There is no immediate win in sight — the sacrifice was made on purely positional considerations. The rest of the game shows that Sam’s intuition is spot on.
17.Qxc3 Bxe4 18.f3?
Xiong didn’t like 18.Rhe1 Nf3 19.Re2 Qd7 but the text is even worse
18…Nxf3 19.Rhf1 Qd7 20.Qb3 Ne5 21.Rf4 Bg6 22.Rdf1 e6 23.Rf6 Rc8
Here and in the next few moves it looks like Black can take on f6 but clearly Shankland didn’t felt he was already winning and did not need the extra complication of weak black squares around his king.
24.Bc1 Rc4 25.Qe3 Qa7 26.Nf5 Qxe3 27.Nxe3 Rh4 28.R6f4 Rxh3 29.a4 h6 30.axb5 axb5 31.Rb4 Nd3! 32.cxd3 Bxd3+ 33.Ka2 Bxf1 34.Nxf1 Rh1 35.Rf4 hxg5 36.Rf2 Bd4 37.Be3 Rxf1! 38.Bxd4
[38.Rxf1 Bxe3]
38…Rxf2 39.Bxf2 h4
Black has 5 passed pawns for the bishop. Way more than enough.
40.Kb3 f5 41.Kb4 h3 0–1

Shankland, Samuel (2717) — Sosa, Tomas (2453) [D38]
American Continental-ch 2018 Montevideo (11), 10.06.2018

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qb3 a5
This move appeals more to the attacking player. The more popular 5…c5 has the possibility of transposing right away into the endgame with 6.dxc5 Qa5 7.Bd2 dxc4 8.Qxc4 Qxc5 9.Qxc5 Bxc5 the game is equal, but Black didn’t play the Ragozin Complex to go into the endgame!
6.a3 Be7 7.Bf4 0–0 8.e3 b6 9.Rc1 Bb7 10.cxd5 Nxd5 11.Nxd5 Bxd5 12.Bc4 Bxf3 13.gxf3 Bd6 14.Bg3 Nd7 15.Bb5 Nf6 16.Ke2 Nh5 17.Rc6 Nxg3+ 18.hxg3 e5?
Black is trying to open up the position to get at the white king, but he does not get the desired result. On the contrary it opens up the position so that White queenside forces and coordinate with the rook on the kingside.
19.dxe5 Bxe5 20.Bd3 g6?
[20…h6 is indicated]
21.Bxg6! hxg6 22.Rxg6+ Bg7 23.Rh4!
Transferring the rook to the g-file. White is already winning.
23…a4 24.Qa2 Qd7 25.Rhg4! Qb5+
The only other way to prolong the game, 25…Rad8 (threatening Qd1 mate) also loses to 26.Rxg7+ Kh8 27.Qb1 Qd2+ 28.Kf1 Qd1+ 29.Qxd1 Rxd1+ 30.Kg2 although here a bit of endgame technique is necessary.
26.Ke1 Rad8
If Sam is not careful then Black sneaks in 27…Qa5+ 28.Kf1 Rd1+ 29.Kg2 Qe1 and it is the second player who wins.
27.Rxg7+ Kh8 28.R7g5
Intending Rh4 mate.
28…Rd1+ 29.Kxd1 Qf1+ 30.Kd2 Rd8+ 31.Rd5 Qxf2+ 32.Kd3! Qf1+ 33.Ke4 f5+ 1–0
After Kf1 the checks are at an end.
A nice tournament victory, and totally well-deserved.
 
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant, he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net

Murray’s recovery

Considering Andy Murray’s 11-month absence from the competitive scene, his performance yesterday at the Queen’s Club was, to say the least, encouraging. Sure, he found himself on the wrong end of a match against surging Nick Kyrgios, his first at the Fever-Tree Championships. On the other hand, there were enough sightings of his World Number One self to build on; the fact that he won the first set easily, bowed in the second via a tiebreak, and lost the third five and seven just five months off hip surgery speaks volumes of his commitment and skill set.
Certainly, Murray hoped for better from his comeback. That said, he did admit that his level of preparation was far from that required to keep pace at the sport’s highest echelon. “I really haven’t played a whole lot of tennis, so I’m happy I got out there and competed and performed respectably,” he said in his post-mortem. And just so everybody else wouldn’t pile on the expectations, he added that he needed “to wait and see what happens the next few days and chat with my team because I don’t know exactly what’s best for me just now.”
Indeed, Murray understands the value of taking things slow. Last year, he found himself prepping for the United States Open with the same hip problem that later had him going under the knife, to disappointing results. All the wiser, he noted yesterday that he wouldn’t be pushing himself, never mind that — or especially because — he’s an old 31. On the court, though, he didn’t show any signs of easing off his trademark body-punishing playing style. In fact, he looked every bit his old self, outbursts included — every bit, that is, save for the sharpness of his game.
And so Murray will wait and see how he feels when the rigors of his effort that lasted 21 minutes short of three hours yesterday will manifest themselves. “If I wake up and I really don’t feel good tomorrow, then that’s obviously not a great sign for best-of-five-set tennis at this stage,” he said. “However, if I pull up and feel okay, then that’s a good sign.” Still, it’s clear that his recovery is a matter of when, not if — which, at this point, is progress in and of itself.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

Cryptocurrencies fall as Korean exchange says $32 million stolen

Cryptocurrencies dropped after the second South Korean exchange in as many weeks said it was hacked, renewing concerns about the safety of digital-asset trading venues.
Bithumb, ranked by Coinmarketcap.com as the world’s seventh-largest crypto exchange by traded value, said on Wednesday that hackers stole about 35 billion won ($32 million) and that Ripple was among the coins taken. The exchange halted cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals, said it will compensate victims and moved investor assets to a so-called cold wallet, which is disconnected from the Internet and less vulnerable to theft.
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, dropped as much as 2 percent and was trading at $6,624 as of 7:24 a.m. in New York, bringing this year’s decline to 54 percent, according to Bloomberg composite pricing. Ripple, Ethereum and Litecoin also retreated, along with some Asia-listed stocks with exposure to digital currencies.
Enthusiasm for virtual currencies has waned this year partly due to a string of cyber heists, including the nearly $500 million theft from Japanese exchange Coincheck Inc. in late January. Last week, a South Korean venue called Coinrail said that some of the exchange’s digital coins appeared to have been stolen by hackers, though it didn’t disclose how much.
While the latest theft has weighed on sentiment, investor reactions have been relatively subdued, said Ryan Rabaglia, head trader at cryptocurrency dealing firm Octagon Strategy Ltd. in Hong Kong. “The market has sort of become a bit more battle-hardened. It can weather the storm on these negative reports.”
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The crypto-mania that spread worldwide last year was particularly intense in South Korea, with Bitcoin prices in the country at one point climbing to a 50 percent premium over those in America.
The fervor has since cooled amid a government crackdown, but South Korean exchanges are still among the world’s most active. The country’s policy makers are debating comprehensive regulations for cryptocurrencies, with proposals ranging from shutting down local exchanges to allowing them to operate under increased supervision.
The South Korean government said it started an investigation into the Bithumb hack and that it will review the security systems at 21 of the nation’s crypto exchanges.
The hacks in South Korea show “how ill-prepared a lot of the exchanges still are across large markets,” said Vijay Ayyar, the Singapore-based head of business development at Luno, a cryptocurrency exchange. “The overall market is seeing a lot of regulatory action and incidents like these will only hasten the process.” — Bloomberg

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