Fernando Peralta is a new Argentine chess champion. A native of Lomas de Zamora clinched his third national title following his success in 2006 and 2018.

The 97th Argentine Championship took place from December 1-10 in San Carlos de Bariloche, Rio Negro. The event brought together the twelve best Argentine players, competing in a round-robin format.

The tournament was a very close race among the top-rated participants that came down to the wire. Suffice it to say that three players – Fernando Peralta, Leandro Krysa and Sandro Mareco – shared first place coming into the final eleventh round on 7/10 with Pablo Acosta and top-rated Alan Pichot (pictured below) trailing them by a half-point.

Mareco and Krysa playing each other drew their last game and opened the door for Peralta, facing Acosta with the white pieces. Fernando seized the opportunity and wrestled the title after scoring a crucial final-round victory.

Meanwhile, Pichot beat Acosta and caught up with Mareco and Krysa but took silver thanks to a greater number of victories. For the same reason, Leonardo Krysa (pictured below) edged out Sandro Mareco and claimed the third place on the podium.

Final standings:

Official website: federacionargentinadeajedrez.org/

Photo: Benjamin Mela