National Master Dandel Fernandez of the Philippines placed runner-up in the 32nd Abu Dhabi International Chess Festival Seniors Chess Tournament held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Aug. 18, 2026.
Fernandez, who is also a certified online Arena Grandmaster, finished the 7-round blitz chess tournament tied in second place with 5.5 points on account of five wins, one draw and one loss, the same output as Grandmaster Alexei Barsov of Uzbekistan.
After the tie break was applied, Fernandez took the silver medal while Barsov settled for third place.
Grandmaster Vladimir Akopian of the USA claimed the championship with 6.0 points.
Fernandez started the tournament strong, winning four straight games against Arena FIDE Master Joey Cabaya of the Philippines, Krishna Salim of India, Laszlo Kovari of Hungary and Barsov before settling for a draw with Akopian in the fifth round.
He was beaten by International Master Ilgar Bajaranj of Azerbaijan in the sixth round but bounced back with a victory against Hassan Suliman Hamza of Sudan in the final round to make the podium.
Meanwhile, the Olandag family bagged third place in the Family Team event.
The Olandag team was powered by Eric and his daughters Meghan and Marthina.