IM André Sousa won the Portuguese Championship, a 10-player round-robin that took place at Teatro Garcia de Resende, in Évora city from September 7-15. It is his third national title over six years.
Sousa secured the first prize with a round to spare after defeating Jose Padeiro in the penultimate round. The champion turned in an excellent performance 7 out of 9 (five wins and four draws) and picked up 17 rating points.
The rating-favourite Jorge Ferreira finished second a full point behind the champion (he has yet to win his first title); the young FM Bruno Martins came clear third, earned 24 rating points, and stamped himself as the future of Portuguese chess.
The 16-time national champion and the record holder António Fernandes was looking for the 17th national title in Évora, but the tournament turned into a big disappointment for him.
Final standings:
1 | IM | Sousa, Andre | 2406 | 7 |
2 | GM | Ferreira, Jorge | 2520 | 6 |
3 | FM | Martins, Bruno | 2335 | 5½ |
4 | IM | Dias, Paulo | 2335 | 4½ |
5 | IM | Rocha, Sergio | 2344 | 4½ |
6 | NM | Fidalgo, Andre | 2263 | 4½ |
7 | FM | Veiga, Jose | 2369 | 4½ |
8 | FM | Santos, Jose | 2344 | 4 |
9 | FM | Padeiro, Jose | 2235 | 3 |
10 | GM | Fernandes, Antonio | 2343 | 1½ |
In the women’s tournament, Filipa Pipiras won the title in a close competition with Sara Monteiro whom she beat in the winner-takes-it-all final-round clash. This defeat relegated Monteiro to the third position while Camila Avelino took silver.
Photo: Official website
Official website: fpx.pt
