By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
The National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) will write a letter of appeal seeking to overturn the FIDE decision to disqualify the Philippine team from the 2021 FIDE Online Chess Olympiad due to violation of fair play policy by one of its players.
Grandmaster Jayson Gonzales, who heads the delegation, disclosed this Monday and said it was unfair to punish the whole team for the offense of one of their 12 players.
The PH team finished second behind Indonesia in Division 2 to advance in the Top Division phase but was disqualified.
FIDE did not mention the exact infraction but among the violations under the fair play policy include piloting and use of chess engine assistance to name a few.
With the development, Shenzen-China moved from third to second with 13 points while Australia took the last seat with 10 points.
The name of the player involved was withheld, but Gonzales said the player will not be allowed to join any NCFP-organized online tournaments and can only compete in over-the-board events.
