We are sorry, the requested page does not exist
Biggest-ever Asian Games ready for liftoff in China after Covid delay
The biggest Asian Games in history, boasting about 12,000 competitors -- more than the Olympics -- will open on Saturday in the Chinese city of Hangzhou after a year's delay because of Covid. Athletes including world and Olympic champions will fight for medals in 40 sports from athletics, swimming and football to eSports and bridge. Nine sports, among them boxing, break dancing and tennis, will serve as qualifiers for next year's Paris Olympics. The Games were supposed to take place last September but were postponed because of China's strict zero-Covid rules, before China's ruling Communist Party abruptly abandoned the policy. The 19th edition of the Games, which were first held in New Delhi in 1951, throws together competitors from 45 countries and territories across Asia and the Middle East. For China, which hosted the 2022 Winter Olympics in a Covid-secure "bubble" in Beijing, it is a chance to show off its organizational, sporting and technological prowess after the pandemic years cut the country off from the sporting world. "We have overcome a lot of challenges but we are now fully conditioned to hold a successful Games," Chen Weiqiang, chief spokesperson for the Games, said on Wednesday. Sport meets politics The Games will be staged at 54 venues -- 14 newly constructed -- mostly in Hangzhou but also extending to cities as far afield as Wenzhou, 300 kilometres (180 miles) south. The centerpiece is the "Big Lotus" Olympic stadium with a capacity of up to 80,000 where athletics and the opening and closing ceremonies will be staged. President Xi Jinping will attend the opening ceremony and meet Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad there, along with other visiting leaders, Chinese state media says. Assad is making his first visit to ally China since the war erupted in Syria in 2011. Russian President Vladimir Putin likewise attended the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics, along with Xi, and weeks later launched the invasion of Ukraine. Hangzhou, a city of 12 million people an hour's bullet train from Shanghai, is famed in China for its ancient temples, gardens and its beloved West Lake. It is also the unofficial home of China's tech industry, notably the birth place of Jack Ma's Alibaba. The Games will showcase some of the latest tech to come out of the city, including driverless buses, robot dogs and facial recognition. China medal dash Hosts China have topped the medals table at every Asian Games since 1982 and are expected to do so again by the time the curtain comes down on October 8. They should reign in swimming, with Qin Haiyang fresh from his heroics at the world championships, where he announced himself as the new undisputed breaststroke king. The 24-year-old swept all three men's events and set a new world record in the 200m. In athletics, another of the most closely watched sports, India's Olympic and world champion Neeraj Chopra will defend his Asian Games javelin crown. His nearest competitor should be world silver medalist Arshad Nadeem from arch-rivals Pakistan and the countries are also on a collision course in cricket and hockey. ESports, in what is seen as a step toward Olympic inclusion one day, will make its full Asian Games debut having been a demonstration sport five years ago. Lee Sang-hyeok, better known as "Faker", has god-like status in League of Legends and will lead the South Korean charge at the futuristic-looking China Hangzhou Esports Centre. There is an added incentive which has caused controversy in South Korea -- winning gold will exempt them from having to do military service. A feature of the Asian Games is that it includes sports that are a little more quirky than the Olympics. Xiangqi -- also known as "Chinese chess" -- the card game bridge and the ancient wrestling discipline of kurash are all on the menu. Although the Games officially open on Saturday, the sporting action began on Tuesday, when North Korea returned to major international competition for the first time since the pandemic with a 2-0 win over Taiwan in men's football. The post Biggest-ever Asian Games ready for liftoff in China after Covid delay appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Philippines chessers stay put
The Philippine chess team scheduled to see action in the Eastern Asian Youth Championships that was supposed to start yesterday in Hainan, China was forced to stay home due to visa issues......»»
Pinoy bets chase GM norm in Asian juniors chess
Filipino International Masters Daniel Quizon and Michael Concio Jr. launched their campaigns for a Grandmaster norm yesterday at the start of the Asian Juniors and Girls Chess Championships at the Knights Templar Hotel in Tagaytay City......»»
PH hosts Asian Schools chessfest
The Philippines will field in a full delegation when it hosts the online Asian Schools Chess Championships coming off the wraps today (Friday) via the Tornelo.com app......»»
Young Filipino players test mettle in Asian Schools Chess Championships
The Philippines clashes with the best and brightest the region could offer as it sees action in the 2021 Asian Schools Chess Championships unfurling Friday via chess website Tornelo.com......»»
Team Cebu chessers log decent finishes in Asian Zonals
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Team Cebu woodpushers logged decent finishes in the recent FIDE Asian Zonals 3.3 Chess Championships at the Cebu Parklane International Hotel. The international chess tournament used a hybrid online chess format, a first in its history due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, most Filipino players considered it a blessing in disguise […] The post Team Cebu chessers log decent finishes in Asian Zonals appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
Quizon, Concio move on to World Cup
Teenage International Masters Daniel Quizon and Michael Concio Jr. finished first and second, respectively, in the Asian Zonal 3.3 Chess Championships to claim slots to the World Cup 2021 slated in August in Minsk, Belarus......»»
Quizon, Concio top Asian Zonal chess tiff
Teenage International Masters Daniel Quizon and Michael Concio, Jr. finished first and second in the Asian Zonal 3.3 Chess Championships to claim the two slots to the World Cup 2021 slated in August in Minsk, Belarus......»»
NM Roque, Enriquez of Team Cebu climb up Asian Zonals chess rankings
CEBU CITY, Philippines— National Masters (NM) Merben Roque and Rogelio Enriquez Jr. of Team Cebu improved their rankings in the ongoing FIDE Asian Zonals 3.3 Chess Championships after snatching victories in their respective campaigns after round seven. After losing to International Master (IM) Jingyao Tin of Singapore in round six, NM Roque bounced back strong […] The post NM Roque, Enriquez of Team Cebu climb up Asian Zonals chess rankings appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
NM Roque, Velarde score big wins in Asian Zonal chess tourney
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Team Cebu’s National Master (NM) Merben Roque and junior woodpusher Jerish John Velarde struck big wins after the fifth round of the ongoing Asian Zonal 3.3 Chess Championships. NM Roque continues to ascend in the rankings after beating Malaysia’s Yu Tian Poh in round five to improve from 22nd to the […] The post NM Roque, Velarde score big wins in Asian Zonal chess tourney appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
FIDE Asian Zonal chess tourney starts
CEBU CITY, Philippines—- In a very rare opportunity, Cebu has been chosen as one of the hosts of a major international wood pushing tournament, the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) Asian Zonal 3.3 Chess Championships 2021 that officially unfolds today, May 1, at the Cebu Parklane International Hotel. Due to the travel restrictions brought by […] The post FIDE Asian Zonal chess tourney starts appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
De Guzman, Ibanez, Antonio in 1-2-3 finish
International Master Ricky de Guzman overcame a first-round defeat to lead a 1-2-3 finish by the Philippines in the Zone 3.3 qualifier of the Asian Seniors Online Chess Championships Wednesday night......»»
Quizon clips Mongolian International Master
Filipino Daniel Quizon downed fellow International Master Dambasuren Batsuren of Mongolia in the seventh and final round and then edged the latter and two others via tiebreak to rule the Zone 3.3 qualification of the Asian Juniors Online Chess Championships Friday night......»»
Antipolo City throws support on Ajido
The Antipolo City government led by Mayor Casimiro “Jun” Ynares III will provide support to Antipolo-born swimmer Jamesray Mishael Ajido, who won the country’s lone gold medal in record-breaking fashion at the recent 11th Asian Age-Group Swimming Championships......»»
Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar on overseas deployment to ASEAN, arrives im Phillipines
Manila [Philippines], March 25 (ANI): India Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar, a specialized Pollution Control Vessel, reached Manila, Philippines on Monday, marking the commencement of its (overseas deployment) OSD mission to Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries. ASEAN countries includes Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, " acc.....»»
Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar on overseas deployment to ASEAN nations, arrives in Philippines
Manila [Philippines], March 25 (ANI): India Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar, a specialized Pollution Control Vessel, reached Manila, Philippines on Monday, marking the commencement of its (overseas deployment) OSD mission to Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries. ASEAN countries includes Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, " acc.....»»
India, Philippines have seen very perceptible growth in recent times: Jaishankar
Manila [Philippines], March 26 (ANI): Hailing ties between India and the Philippines, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is on a visit to the Philippines on Tuesday, said that ties between Delhi and Manila have witnessed a very perceptible growth in recent times. Addressing a joint press briefing with Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo, Jaishankar said, "As you all know, India's ties with the.....»»
PMI, ARQ, ZIP Sanman boxers feted in first Elorde-Pacquiao Boxing Awards
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Central Visayas was well-represented during the inaugural Elorde-Pacquiao Boxing Awards at Okada Manila last Sunday, March 24th. This was after 13 of Central Visayas’ best boxers from Cebu and Bohol were feted for their achievements in 2023. They were headed by none other than former World Boxing Organization (WBO) world minimumweight.....»»
Southeast Asian Police, Prosecutors Join Forces to Fight Scamdemic
Bangkok - Police and prosecutors across Southeast Asia are forging new ways of working together to thwart and pursue the sprawling criminal networks behind the online scam centers that have quickly taken root in the region, experts involved in the effort have told VOA.In a few short years, scamming hubs bilking billions of dollars out of victims across the globe have set up shop in Cambodia, Laos, the Philippine.....»»
Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar on overseas deployment to ASEAN, arrives im Phillipines
Manila [Philippines], March 25 (ANI): India Coast Guard ship Samudra Paheredar, a specialized Pollution Control Vessel, reached Manila, Philippines on Monday, marking the commencement of its (overseas deployment) OSD mission to Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries. ASEAN countries includes Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, " acc.....»»