Danica Alexis Ablang emerged as the under-eight years old champion in the 2008 National Age Group Chess Championship organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) held at Mandaluyong City Hall Complex last April 1-6.

ABLANG

Danica, daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Darwin Ablang of Sobol, San Fabian, is a seven-year old grade 1 student at the Joyland School, Inc.

Prior to the national championship, Danica won a bronze medal in the Zone Meet and was champion in the savants Club Chess Tourney 14 years and under.
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AGAIN, KARATE CHAMPS-Members of the YMCA-Dagupan City Team, headed by their coach, Dr. Enrico Vasquez, proudly show the six gold, five silver, and 10 bronze medals they won in the 3rd Philippine Olympic Festival-North Central Luzon Cordillera Championships held April 2 to 6 at the Subic Convention Center. The team is composed of Jayson Ramil Macaalay, Fidel Salvador Reyes, Rhys Palaganas, Raniella Isabel Gutierrez, Joco Vasquez, GerardMartin Tamayo, Koleen Juguilon, Matthew Serafica, BJ Mangsat, Kaille Juguilon, William Charles Eden, Jeramiel Gutierrez, Carl Arenos, John Meverick Edralin, David Rosario, Dan Kurt Vidal, Vittorio Isaac Songco, Gilbert Mangsat, King Justine Mosada, Matthew Manantan and Elizabeth Eden. The winners of the regional championships will officially represent North Central Luzon-Cordillera Region to the National Olympic Festival in October.

DAGUPAN BANGUS FESTIVAL EVENT

NATIONAL champion Irene Chui and Coach Renato Reyes will conduct a badminton clinic as a special event during the Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez Badminton Cup which reels off May 3 to 4 as part of the Dagupan Bangus Festival, according to Councilor Karlos Reyna, event chair. Both Chui and Reyes will conduct tutorial sessions for both advanced badminton players and beginners at the air-conditioned CSI Stadia which has badminton courts designed for international competitions.

Fernandez said the tournament will raise local badminton to world-class standards.

The competition will have four categories, namely: Juniors category 17 years and under, elite aged 18 to 25, seniors category for those  aged 26 to 35; and veterans category for those aged 36 and up.
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Shooters from Metro Manila and other provinces are expected to troop to Pangasinan to join local shooters in the Governor’s Cup, which is one of the highlights of this year’s Pangasinan Pistay Dayat 2008.

Gov. Amado Espino Jr. and Philippine National Police Chief Avelino Razon, Jr. will lead the ceremonial shots in the opening day of the PMA Masigasig Class ’72 Governor’s Cup Shootfest on May 2 to 4 at the PNP Firing Range in Lingayen.
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SOME 200 athletes from the Private Schools Athletic Association (PRISAA) will be sent to Zamboanga City to compete against the best of the nation’s college players for this year’s National PRISAA Games slated on April 8-14.

Except for baseball, football and dance sport, the Region 1 contingent will compete in 17 team sports, individual events in the men and women divisions like basketball, sepak takraw, softball, volleyball, athletics, badminton, chess, karatedo, lawn tennis, swimming, table tennis and taekwondo.

Region 1 is also fielding its bets to the vocal solo singing contest, cultural events (men and women) and the Mutya ng PRISAA.

PRISAA Region 1, which hosted the 2006 national PRISAA, landed fifth in the overall standing of medal tally in 2006 and 2007.

The selected athletes will come from Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte and the cities of Dagupan, San Carlos, Urdaneta, Alaminos, San Fernando, Candon, Vigan and Laoag.
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Tour de Langkawi veteran cyclist Merculio Ramos, Jr. scored his first victory of the year by ruling the “3rd Bataoil Cycling Challenge Siklista Kontra sa Droga” last March 15 that started and finished at Aguilar town in conjunction with the celebration of the town fiesta.

The 29-year old Ramos, originally from Tarlac City but now a resident of Binalonan, orchestrated a gallant sprint finish against breakaway partner Reynaldo Navarro in the last 300 meters to pocket the P8,000 top prize.

Navarro earned P6,000 for finishing second.
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KARATE TOURNAMENT

THE San Carlos City team, powered by students from various schools and colleges in the city, garnered eight gold, five silver, and five bronze medals in an all-style karate tournament held in Angeles City, Pampanga on March 2.

Sensie Ronald Vistro, head of the de-legation and chief instructor of the Wado Ryu Karate-Do Institute, said the tournament was participated in by 172 karatekas from Laguna, Batangas, National Capital Region, Bataan, Pampanga, Olongapo and Pangasinan.
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IRAA BADMINTON CHAMPS–Members of the Pozorrubio Badminton Team, the Team Overall Champion in the 2008 Ilocos Region Athletic Association (IRAA) Meet held in Lingayen on February 24-29, join their supporters and benefactors that include (extreme left) Provincial Board Member Danny Uy after their last win. The team, on its 10th consecutive year as IRAA Overall Champ, will fly to Puerto Princesa, Palawan on April 21-25 for the Palarong Pambansa.

RESIDENTS of Pangasinan need not go to Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada or a mall in Manila to watch live the second encounter between Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao against Mexican Super featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez on March 16.

Urban Satellite Vision, Inc. (USATV), one of the biggest cable television company in Northern Luzon, will bring the live Marquez-Pacquiao II right in their living room on Community Channel 6.

Marquez and Pacquiao fought the first time around in 2004 that ended in a controversial draw despite Pacquiao knocking down Marquez three times only in the first round.
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