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3rd APS chess player competes in 17th annual NATO tournament

  • Published
  • By Margaret Barnett
  • Air Force Services Agency
POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Master Sgt. Dan Ranario, 3rd Aerial Port Squadron, was part of the six-member U.S. team that participated in the recent 17th NATO championship.

This is the fourth time Sergeant Ranario has qualified for the NATO team.

Other members of the team were Lt. Col. David Hater, U.S. Army; 1st Lt. Arthur Macaspac, U.S. Army; Master Gunnery Sgt. Dwayne Roberts, U.S. Marine Corps. Staff Sgt. Robert Bucholtz, U.S. Air Force, and Petty Officer 1st Class Narciso Victoria, U.S. Navy.

The U.S. team placed eighth with 15.5 points. All of the U.S. team members got at least three points out of a possible seven. The 4th Howard Staunton Memorial Grandmaster tournament was held, along with the NATO championship.

This event provided a rare opportunity for the team to view the remarkable chess GMs. Each day after tournament play ended, a GM provided a commentary on the GM games.
The NATO team is selected from participants in the Interservice tournament. The player with the highest score for each service is selected and the next two players with the highest score make up the six-person NATO team. Each service selects a six-person team to compete in the Interservice tournament.

The Air Force team won first place with 26.5 points. The Air Force has placed first each year since they re-entered the tournament in 2002 after more than a 10-year break.

The Air Force team members were Col. Samuel Echaure, Holloman AFB, N.M.; Lt. Cols. Douglass Taffinder, Los Angeles AFB, Calif., and Michael Koteles, Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz.; Sergeant Ranario; Tech. Sgt. Nathaniel Ola, Vandenburg AFB, Calif.; and Sergeant Bucholtz.

The Navy won second place with 20.5 points, the Marines third place with 18 points, and Army fourth place with 12 points.

The 2006 Interservice Chess tournament was hosted by the Navy in June at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla. The Air Force holds a tournament in May to select a team to participate in the Interservice tournament.

The hosting of the Inter-service tournament rotates. The Navy hosted this year, the Army hosts next year, and the Air Force will host in 2008.