IM Mark Jay Bacojo shares lead in ultra-tough Russian Chess Crown Standard A in Moscow

FILIPINO International Master (IM) Mark Jay Bacojo knows going to Russia, one of the superpowers of chess, and winning there is like a suicide mission.

But the 19-year-old Far Eastern University (FEU) standout conquered his inner fear and is delivering a performance for the ages after seizing not just a share of the lead with a round to go, but also a Grandmaster (GM) norm in the ultra-tough Russian Chess Crown Standard A in Moscow.

Mr. Bacojo conquered Russian FIDE Master Stanislav Bukreev in a marathon 70-move, Queen’s Pawn duel that catapulted the former straight to a four-man tie at the helm with seven points apiece after the 10^th and penultimate round.

He sealed his first GM norm in the process and has gained a whopping 83.8 rating points and an astonishing 2667 performance rating — equivalent to a super GM level — approaching the final round.

There, he clashes with another Russian in IM Ramil Faizrakhmanov for a shot at history as the first Filipino to win on Russian soil.

He also shares the lead with two more Russian GMs Boris Savchenko and Zhamsaran Tsydypov.

The late great GM Rosendo Balinas won a stronger GM tournament in Odessa in 1978 but that was in Ukraine, not Russia.

“Technically, Mr. Bacojo has the best performance by a Filipino in a Russian tournament,” said Mr. Bacojo’s FEU coach GM Jayson Gonzales.

“If he wins, he’ll be the first Filipino to win there because that one by Mr. Balinas in Odessa was not in Russia, but in Ukraine.”

All nine foes Mr. Bacojo faced had higher FIDE rating, which included four GMs whom he scored a win and two draws against a loss.

But this one was possibly his best game in the Russian capital yet as he unleashed a ferocious sacrificial attack where he gave a knight that saw Mr. Bukreev’s king scampering for safety by jumping from the kingside to the queenside.

Just as when it looked like Mr. Bukreev’s king had found a safe haven, Mr. Bacojo found a way to win the opposing queen for a rook and bishop and defended well to extract the full point. — Joey Villar