John Ranel Morazo turned a big break into a winning moment, stunning the top two seeds to capture the juniors title while Vince Angelo Medina ran away with the kiddies crown in the 2009 Shell National Youth Active Chess Championships at SM Megamall last Sunday.
A substitute for fellow Univ. of Baguio student Leonardo Abalos, Morazo surprised second seed and erstwhile unbeaten Jan Emmanuel Garcia in the sixth round then shocked top seed Bryll Arellano in the eighth before toppling Luffe Magdalaga in the final round to clinch the victory.
Abalos topped the Tuguegarao qualifier but was among those trapped by floods in Baguio and failed to make it to the national finals. Morazo took over Abalos spot as fourth placer in the Northern Luzon leg and made the most of his stint, finishing with seven points and bagging the top prize of P30,000 in the 20-and-under category.