National Master Elwin Retanal topped the 2nd Only Move International FIDE Rated Rapid Chess Tournament held 27-28 June 2025 at the Alfaisal University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Visit chess-results.com for round by round results and standings.
Retanal, the 1997 Philippine Junior chess champion, who hails from Minglanilla, Cebu finished the 7-round Swiss competition with a perfect 7.0 points.
He swept past Yousuf Omar Gharib, Balamurugan Rithita, and Arena International Master Nasser Asain in his first three matches.
Retanal then dismantled Jordanian Master Ghayth Ababneh before subduing Mohammed Alaqeel Abdulaziz, who is a member of Saudi Chess Federation (SCF) team in the World Chess Olympiad, in the fifth round.
Maintaining his momentum, Retanal dealt Grandmaster Abdelrahman Hesham and FIDE Master Hatem Eldesoky, both from Egypt, to complete a clean sweep that earned him 6,000 Saudi Riyal in cash prize.
Grandmaster Mohamed Haddouche of Algeria came second with 6.5 points, followed by Egypt’s Ismail Ammar, Jordan’s Ababneh Ghayth and Pakistan’s Arena International Master Hamid Hassan with 6.0 points each.-Marlon Bernardino