By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
FIDE Master and Asian Para Games gold medalist Sander Severino passed away on Saturday, Feb. 7, in his hometown in Silay, Negros Occidental due to heart failure.
He was 40.
His passing came a few weeks after bringing home five gold medals at the ASEAN Para Games held in Thailand last January, where he ruled the men’s individual standard P1 and men’s individual blitz P1.
He was also part of the men’s team standard P1 that won the gold medal, steering Team Philippines to its best finish in the said regional meet with a total haul of 45 gold, 37 silver and 52 bronze medals.
He was about to be honored by the Philippine Sportswriters Association during its annual Awards Night on Feb. 16 for his ASEAN Games accomplishments
Diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Severino was confined to a wheelchair for most of his life. But that didn’t stop him from excelling in his sport, chess, where he first competed — and won two gold medals — for Team Philippines in the 2015 ASEAN Para Games in Singapore.
He has been a consistent ASEAN Para Games campaigner since then and has won a total of 16 gold medals. He also bagged four Asian Para Games gold medals, a bronze in the FIDE World Chess Olympiad for People with Disabilities and a gold in the 2020 International Physically Disabled Chess Association World Online Chess Rapid Championship.
