25-Jun-2008 96
Rajendra Kumar Sahu of Bhubaneswar drew his 11th and last round clash with Manas Ranjan Parida to clinch the title in the 15th Makhanlal Haldar Memorial All-Orissa Open Chess Tournament, which concluded at Durgabari Samiti in Puri today.
Seventh seed Sahu and top seed Debasish Das tied for the top spot, scoring nine points each. But experienced Sahu pushed school boy Das to second position eventually on the basis of progressive score to take home the top prize of Rs 7,000. Runner-up Das registered a last round victory over Dasarathi Sahu to receive second prize of Rs 5,000.
Puri legislator Maheswar Mohanty gave away the trophy and cash prizes at the closing function. Host Puri District Chess Association president Kumar Haldar said efforts would be made to make the tournament an all-India affair in the future.
Final standings (Top 10): 1. Rajendra Kumar Sahu (9), 2. Debasish Das (9), 3. Manoj Kumar Panigrahi (8.5), 4. Soumya Ranjan Mishra (8.5), 5. Bibhuti Bhusan Das (8), 6. Arghya Arpan Parida (8), 7. Prasanta Kumar Bihari (8), 8. Dasarathi Sahu (7.5), 9. Bhabesh Mohanty (7.5), 10. Narayan Swain (7.5).
