After a rather mediocre year in 2009, Irene Kharisma Sukandar has her heart and mind set on improving her international standing in three prestigious events this year.

The events include the Asian Games in China in November, the World University Chess Cham-pionship in Switzerland and the Chess Olympiad in Russia, both in September.

On Thursday, Irene, who will turn 18 this April, started her intensive training under the supervision of the newly-arrived Russian coach Ruslan Scherbakov in Cipendawa village in Cipanas, West Java.

The country's first and only Woman Grandmaster titlist, who earned her 2008 title at the prodigious age of 16, will train there until April with compatriot Susanto Megaranto, who became the country's youngest Grandmaster in 2004.

Both are Indonesia's chess envoys for the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, which run from Nov. 12 to 27. There they will face world-class chess players from China, India, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Iran, Kazakhstan and the Philippines. The Indonesian chess team failed to win any medals at the previous 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, where chess was featured for the first time.

"I understand that Asia is a very competitive region for chess athletes. To be realistic, if I can just get a bronze medal *in the Asian Games* it will be fantastic," said Irene, who will take a one-year leave from her second-semester of study at Gunadarma University, where she is majoring in English literature.

A stacked tryout schedule has been prepared for them by the Indonesian Chess Association (PERCASI) prior to the quadrennial multi-sport event.

Their first tryout is the International Tashkent Chess Tournament in Uzbekistan on March 22-April 1. Two more tryouts following afterwards are the Kuala Lumpur Open in Malaysia, on April 6-12 and the Asia Continental Chess Championship in Subic, Philippines on April 20-30.

The following May, PERCASI also plans to send Irene and Susanto to Odessa, Ukraine for coaching sessions with Vladimir Tukmakov. A series of tournaments in Europe are also listed, including the Biel Open and the Martigny Open in Switzerland between July and August, and the Amsterdam Open, the Dieren Open, and Vlissingen Open in the Netherland from August to September.

"To be a champion depends on the athlete's own effort. Other people around him/her can only support by providing the infrastructure. The athlete must do the rest with focus and dedication with gusto," PERCASI deputy chairman Utut Adianto told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Utut said that Irene as well as Susanto still had a lot of catching up to do.

"For Irene, it's her *sometimes-distracted* concentration, while for Susanto, it's his lack of motivation," said Utut, adding that technically, the players were also expected to improve their opening and positional-understanding strategies.

This year's Chess Olympiad, in Khanty Mansiysk, Russia, on Sept. 20-Oct. 4, will be Irene's fourth.

The biennial chess tournament, held by the chess international governing body FIDE (F*d*ration Internationale des *checs), will be Irene's opportunity to move up from her current Woman Grandmaster title.

She had earned all of her previous international titles from the event, starting from the 2004 Chess Olympiad in Calvia, Spain, where she got her FIDE Master, the 2006 event in Turin, Italy, where she rose as International Master title holder, and her best feat so far in 2008 when she earned her current title at the Chess Olympiad in Dresden, Germany.

"As I have had the women's highest title, I hope I can excel by getting the men's International Master," said Irene, whose current rating is 2325. The minimum rating for the IM title is 2400.

Woman Grandmaster is the highest women-only title, which is equal with men's FIDE Master. Chess players are qualify for the titles by achieving a FIDE Rating of 2300 or more.

Popular

RI, Australia strengthen partnership on taxing crypto assets

Analysis: Indonesia denies normalization with Israel to enter OECD

Citroen to produce electric cars in Indonesia