Written by IA, IO Nguyen Phuoc Trung
The ASEAN Chess Championships is the ASEAN Chess Confederation's principal individual championship for Open and Women players, complementing the ASEAN+ Age Group Chess Championships. First held in Singapore in 2010, the championship has been staged six times, with the latest edition held in Ozamiz, the Philippines, in 2025.
The inaugural championship was held in Singapore from 26 to 30 December 2010. It brought together 52 players — 32 in the Open and 20 in the Women's section — representing five federations: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Viet Nam.
The championship subsequently expanded beyond the ASEAN member federations, following the broader ASEAN+ concept. By the 6th edition in Ozamiz, Misamis Occidental, in 2025, the event was officially billed as the ASEAN+ Individual Chess Championships.
The 2025 championship attracted 78 players in the two main title sections, comprising 41 players in the Open and 37 in the Women's section. The field included participants from India and Mongolia, as well as players registered under the FIDE flag, alongside representatives of Southeast Asian federations.
The Campomanes CupThe second edition, held in Singapore in 2011 by the Singapore Chess Federation under the auspices of the ASEAN Chess Confederation, was played as the Campomanes Cup.
The event was named in honour of Florencio Campomanes of the Philippines, who served as FIDE President from 1982 to 1995 and played a major role in the development and internationalisation of chess in Asia.
Viet Nam's GM Cao Sang won the Open championship with 6½ points from nine rounds. The leading group also included GM Susanto Megaranto of Indonesia, GM Richard Bitoon of the Philippines and IM Nguyen Van Huy of Viet Nam. In the Women's championship, WFM Medina Warda Aulia of Indonesia won the title with 7½/9.
Unlike the ASEAN+ Age Group Chess Championships, which has followed a much more regular calendar, the ASEAN individual championship has been held at irregular intervals.
The first two editions were staged in Singapore in 2010 and 2011, followed by Bekasi, West Java, Indonesia, in 2015, Bac Giang in Viet Nam in 2019, Quezon City in the Philippines in 2023, and Ozamiz, Misamis Occidental, in the Philippines in 2025.
There were four-year gaps between the 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 editions. The 2019–2023 interval also coincided with the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first three editions were devoted exclusively to Standard Chess.
The inaugural 2010 championship used a nine-round Swiss system. The 2011 edition was played as a nine-round round robin, while the 2015 championship featured 12-player fields in both the Open and Women's sections, with each section played over 11 rounds.
The 4th edition, held in Bac Giang in 2019, marked an important change in the format. For the first time, championship titles were contested in all three time controls — Standard, Rapid and Blitz — in both the Open and Women's sections.
Several editions also included Challenger competitions alongside the main championships, providing opportunities for lower-rated players to compete in a separate section under the rating limits specified in the respective regulations.
The 5th edition, held in Quezon City in February 2023, was an exception to the usual format. The AQ Prime ASEAN Chess Championship was organised as an invitational closed tournament with a single 12-player Open field played over 11 rounds. There was no separate Women's championship in that edition.
The 6th edition in 2025 returned to the three-format structure, with Standard, Rapid and Blitz championships in both the Open and Women's sections, together with Challenger competitions.
Title and norm opportunities have traditionally been one of the principal attractions of the ASEAN Chess Championships.
The regulations of earlier editions provided GM and WGM norm opportunities for the champions and IM and WIM title opportunities for leading players, subject to the applicable FIDE requirements.
The 2025 regulations provided direct GM and WGM titles for the gold medallists. The silver and bronze medallists could receive IM and WIM titles, subject to the FIDE requirements concerning the strength of the field and other applicable conditions. The regulations also provided GM/WGM norm opportunities in the event of a tie for first place under the prescribed conditions.
The 2023 edition produced a notable result for Philippine chess. IM Daniel Quizon won the championship in Quezon City with 7½/11 and earned a GM norm associated with the title. It was his second GM norm. He completed his third GM norm later in 2023 and subsequently fulfilled the remaining FIDE requirements to become a Grandmaster in 2024.
The 2025 championship in Ozamiz carried a total prize fund of USD 28,100.
The first Open title went to GM Zurab Azmaiparashvili, representing Singapore, ahead of IM Oliver Barbosa of the Philippines and GM Susanto Megaranto of Indonesia. The first Women's title went to WGM Nguyen Thi Thanh An of Viet Nam, who led a Vietnamese sweep of the podium.
In 2011, GM Cao Sang of Viet Nam won the Open title, while WFM Medina Warda Aulia of Indonesia took the Women's championship.
The 2015 edition produced another double victory for Viet Nam. Nguyen Anh Khoi, then only 13 years old and already a World Youth champion, defeated top seed Susanto Megaranto in the final round to win the Open championship. In the Women's section, Nguyen Thi Mai Hung completed an unbeaten campaign to take the title.
The 2019 championship in Bac Giang saw strong performances from both Viet Nam and the Philippines. Paulo Bersamina of the Philippines won the Standard and Blitz titles, while Le Tuan Minh of Viet Nam won the Open Rapid championship. In the Women's events, Viet Nam took all three gold medals: Vo Thi Kim Phung in Standard, Hoang Thi Bao Tram in Rapid, and Do Hoang Minh Tho in Blitz.
The 2023 championship was won by Philippine IM Daniel Quizon, who finished the 12-player round robin with 7½ points from 11 games.
The 2025 edition in Ozamiz produced six different champions across the six title events. India's IM Raahul V S won the Open Standard championship, while IM Evgenija Ovod took the Women's Standard title. Nguyen Quoc Hy of Viet Nam and WIM Anna Zhurova won the Open and Women's Rapid championships respectively. The Blitz titles went to FM Nouri Alekhine of the Philippines in the Open and WIM Nguyen Hong Anh of Viet Nam in the Women's section.
The 2025 edition was particularly significant for Raahul V S. His victory in the Open Standard championship placed him among the players to benefit from the direct-title provisions of the championship, subject to the applicable FIDE title and rating requirements.
From its modest beginning with 52 players in Singapore in 2010 to its ASEAN+ format in Ozamiz in 2025, the ASEAN Chess Championships has developed into an important individual chess competition in the region. Its history reflects the changing strength and breadth of Southeast Asian chess, as well as the growing links between ASEAN federations and the wider Asian chess community.
