Cubans with Initial Victories at Benidorm Chess Festival

Victories by three of the four participating Cubans marked the start of the International Chess Festival Hotel Gran Bali in Benidorm, Spain. Its main group features 206 contestants from 41 countries.

Playing with black pieces, the leader of the Cuban ranking, Carlos Daniel Albornoz, defeated the local player Francisco Javier Jiménez in 31 moves of an English Opening. A similar result was achieved by Ernesto Fernández, who played against another local contender, Miguel Álvarez.

That match was decided in 47 moves of another English Opening. Now, both winners are part of a leading group of 82 players, which also includes Leancy Fernández, who secured a victory over Germany's Dominik Damian Valledor.

Maritza Arribas settled for a draw in her debut match against Turkey's Orkun Dizdar. In her next outing, she will face France's David Maloberti.

Albornoz will be paired against Spain's Daniel Navarro, while Ernesto will face Sweden's Pether Olsson. Both duels seem relatively uncomplicated for the Cubans to secure their second successes. Leancy, however, could face a more demanding challenge as the opponent of Alejandro Domingo, another local player.

The tournament will be played over nine rounds using the Swiss system. As part of the broader Festival, the same venue will host the XVI Spanish Chess Team Cup, the 20th edition of the new generations tournament, and the national Blitz championship for mixed pairs.