Normin chess mourns passing away of Minoza, arbiter Maureal

ONE fell ill after a series of triumphant chess campaigns around Mindanao, while the other collapsed on the performance of his duty as a chess arbiter.

The Northern Mindanao chess community mourns the passing away of chess player Romeo ‘Sibugay’ Minoza from Iligan City and chess arbiter Joel Maureal from Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, over the weekend.

Possessing a sturdy will despite his frail-looking condition, Minoza was victorious in the final chapter of his life as a workhorse atop the 64-square-board.

In November last year, Minoza powered his team to the major cash prizes of the Governor Henry S. Oaminal 8-in-1 Chess Festival in Ozamiz City.

But he fell seriously ill and was bedridden some weeks after his team won the championship of the Manny Pacquiao Birthday Chess Tournament in General Santos City last December.

“I want to express my heartfelt condolences on the loss of our esteemed teammate, Romeo Minoza. His strategic brilliance and dedication to the game of chess enriched our experiences on the chessboard and beyond,” wrote Joe Art Capatan on Minoza’s Facebook wall.

Capatan’s troika with Minoza and newly-minted world blitz champion Fide Master Christian Gian Karlo Arca also brought success during the T’nalak Festival chess tournament being held last year in Koronadal City, Cotabato province.

Meanwhile, Maureal had his flag downed after serving in the Cagayan de Oro leg of the first-ever Singapore Chess Festival Qualifying Tournament on Saturday, January 27 at the 2nd Floor of the Limketkai Mall, Cagayan de Oro City.

The tournament’s chief arbiter Lorenzo Cuizon, after noticing that Maureal was not feeling well while seated on a chair, tried to apply “hilot,” a traditional Filipino art of healing commonly used to relax stressed muscles that involve massage, but to no avail.

“Ako siyang gihilot pero dili sa ulo sa iyang kamot ra man ug bat-ang. Wa man ta kabalo high blood siya di man ga saba, 55 pa baya to,” Cuizon later told this writer.

Already unconscious when he was rushed to the Northern Mindanao Medical Center, Maureal ― whose daughter Llyn Jael Maureal was a former Palarong Pambansa player ― apparently slipped into a comatose and died the following day.

It can be recalled that during the 2022 Batang Pinoy National Championships in Vigan City, Maureal stumbled on his feet at the NAIA Airport in Manila while on his way home to Bukidnon.

He resisted when flight medics declared him unfit to board the plane after learning of his hypertension or soaring high blood pressure.

“But let us not forget National Arbiter Joel Llave Maureal who died in the performance of his duty,” reminded Joselito Dormitorio, one of the driving forces behind the newly-formed chess group under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.