EUGENE TORRE - THE GREATEST FILIPINO CHESS PLAYER
Eugene Torre is Asia’s first Chess Grandmaster who hailed from Iloilo. He started playing chess at the tender age of six. In a brood of ten, he never ran out of chess buddies in the family. His older brothers, who were then better players, gave him a run for his money.
His grandfather Eugenio, for whom he was named after, was an oido (unorthodox) player which afforded the young Eugene the intuition and instinct to create unconventional and unpredictable moves. His father provided him the books.
When his father saw his potential of excelling as a chess player, he wrote a family edict that no one can send the young Eugene to an errand so that he can concetrate his time on improving his game. In his primary years in school, Eugene was already winning chess tournaments.
At 16, he held the title of the Philippine Junior and Adult Champion, eventually seeing action in the Chess Olympiad in Germany. He holds the world record for playing Board One in 17 Olympiad appearances. He got his Chess Grand Master title in 1974 in France, where he led Team Philippines to 11th place finish.
Holding a career record of 4 decades of action in world chess Olympiads, Torre has accumulated 86 wins, 111 draws, and 29 losses in 236 games over a span of 19 years. In 1976, his international fame became more pronounced when he defeated then reigning world chess champion Anatoly Karpov.
He was also the confidante and best friend of the reclusive American GM Bobby Fischer, when he served as an official second in the 1992 Fischer-Boris Spassky rematch in Yugoslavia. He has played against world class grandmasters such as Gary Kasparov, Viktor Korchnoi, Viswanathan Anand, Lajos Portish and Ljubomir Ljubojevic, among others.
We take pride in Eugene Torre’s rare display of discipline and diligence to pursue his dream. At a young age, Eugene devoted his attention on the boards and honed his skills. His trailblazing conquest of the world chess inspired not only Filipinos, but also many Asians, who saw in him a role model.
In a sport dominated by Americans and Europeans, Eugene Torre overcame all odds and emerged victorious.
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