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Héctor Manuel Figueroa del Rosario, an 11-year-old boy from the municipality of Camajuaní, in Villa Clara, was crowned champion in the Sub-12 category at the XVIII International Open of Chess Memorial Pedro Lezcano Montalvo, held in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, from March 28 to April 5, 2026.
According to CMHW, the tournament, held using the Swiss system over nine rounds at the Círculo Mercantil de Las Palmas, brought together 162 participants, including several players with international titles.
Figueroa del Rosario finished with 4.5 points out of nine possible, achieving four victories, four losses, and one draw, and furthermore, he was awarded the prize for Best FIDE Elo in the 1700-1601 range.
The young player from Camajuani started with an Elo rating of 1,640 points and gained an additional 120 points upon finishing the tournament, a significant leap for his age and level of experience.
It was his debut in official competitions on Spanish territory, and he reached the final round after defeating David Blanco, Miguel Oramas, and Marcos Jesús Quintero in the early stages.
The achievement of the boy from Villa Clara occurred during a weekend of notable performance for Cuban chess abroad.
In the Open de La Roda, held in the province of Albacete until April 5, Grandmaster Carlos Daniel Albornoz was crowned champion of the tournament, which in its 52nd edition reached a historic record of participation with 215 players from 22 nations, reported La Roda.
Albornoz, originally from Camagüey and with an Elo of 2,579, has thus repeated the title he had already won in the 2025 edition.
In that same tournament, the FIDE Master from Santa Clara, Jorge de Jesús Pérez Marimón finished in 25th place with six points, while the young player from Remedios, Alex Herrera Pedroso, concluded in 122nd place, adding 17 points to his Elo of 2,159.
In Mexico, Grandmaster Elier Miranda Mesa from Caibarién secured third place in the Querétaro Open with 6.5 points, after drawing in the final round against the Peruvian José Eduardo Martínez Alcántara, who took first place.
The data of the Villa Clara chess players was reported by the coach and referee Osmany Pedraza Ledón.
The performance of Figueroa del Rosario takes on special significance at a pivotal moment for Cuban chess: in January 2026, the country's top active chess player, Albornoz himself, requested to be removed from the national team, which represents a severe setback for Cuba ahead of the World Olympiad in Uzbekistan, scheduled for September 2026.
In this context, the emergence of a talent just 11 years old capable of standing out in an international tournament of 162 participants points to a talent pool that Cuban chess urgently needs.
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