Eugene Torre: A Living Legend

GM Eugene Torre in 1982

Whenever Filipinos encounter the word “chess”, the name Eugene Torre automatically pops up in their head. Fans of the board game or not, people recognize and respect his legacy in the sport. Torre, Asia’s First Grandmaster, is the country’s most celebrated and accomplished athlete that his name appears in school textbooks and sports news over the years. 

The chess legend turns 68 this year. While many of his age enjoy retirement, Torre still competes and showcases his robust play in international tournaments. He also continues to champion chess in the local scene, helping in the development of future chess masters. He shows no signs of slowing down in his career. The question is, what keeps him going?

Eugenio Oliveros Torre was born on November 4, 1951, in Iloilo, but raised in Manila. He is seventh of the 10 siblings in the family and started playing chess at age six with his elder brothers and father. Chess was his parents’ means to keep the kids away from trouble.  

“Our parents encouraged us to play chess because they wanted us to stay inside the house to avoid bad cliques, nightclubs, disco, parties, and rumbles. Especially, there were street gangs back then,” Torre recalled.

With his passion for the board game, the young Torre pursued his chess calling. However, there was no formal training, no culture, and no support being offered yet in the country at that time because the game was not popular. But he did not let such conditions hinder him in pursuing his goals. Instead, he rose above that challenge with diligence and resourcefulness, by reading lots of chess books available then. 

Photos of young Eugene Torre displayed in his house in Quezon City

In an interview with ChessBase, Torre recounted that chess players back in his day were on their own unlike nowadays when there are lots of programs and resources available to help players in their preparation. Nonetheless, he noted that his generation of players had a wonderful time in mastering the game because chess back in the day was “a mystery and there was a lot to be discovered.”  

With outstanding brilliance, he won local tourname

nts until there was no challenge left for him. So during his early years in college at Mapua, Torre decided to take his skills to the next level by joining competitions in Europe under one condition from his father-- win or go home. 

“My father gave me a two-year ultimatum that if I would not succeed in chess within two years, I have to go back and focus on my studies. But I became a grandmaster within two years. I have to keep going as my opponents like (Anatoly) Karpov were really focused on chess. So I got no chance to finish my college,” Torre said. 

The medals he won in many tournaments through the years
artistically arranged by his lovely wife Marlin

Torre flew to Europe with the mission to further his game and to put the Philippines’ mark in the world of chess. And he was able to draw the attention and by adding color to tournaments being the Asian champ. “I felt in awe. I have faced world champions then,” he said.  

One of his outstanding feats happened in the 1969 World Junior Chess Championship held in Stockholm, Sweden. The young chess wizard from the Philippines surprised the world with his performance against a rising young Soviet master Karpov.

“They thought of the Philippines, Asia as weak contenders. The game was dominated by the US, Europe, and Russia. They group the players wherein the strong ones faced the weak. So they put me in the group where Karpov is because supposedly the Philippines is a weak contender. But in our match, I almost beat him. But it came to a draw,” Torre recounted.  Eventually, Karpov qualified to the Final A stage and won the tourney, while Torre won the Final B.  

GM Eugene Torre in 2016

Torre conducted his chess crusade around Europe from 1972 to 1973 with the help of chess legend and National Champion Florencio Campomanes, who convinced the national newspaper Daily Express to fund Torre’s crusade with USD250 per month. There he played against the best chess players in the world, especially the ones from Russia (known as a producer of grandmasters). It was a journey filled with heartbreaks but as the European aphorism says, “What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.” He learned from his defeats and turned them into progress. Eventually, it paid off. In 1974, he captured the silver medal at the World Chess Olympiad in Nice, France, where he emerged as the First Asian grandmaster at age 22. 

But the moment that cemented Eugene Torre’s name in the history of the game came two years later at the Marlboro-Loyola Kings Challenge Chess Tournament, a four-player double round-robin held in the Philippines. Three grandmasters flew to Manila: Ljubomir Ljubojević from Yugoslavia, Walter Browne from the United States, and the reigning World Champion -- the guy he almost beat in the World Junior Chess Championship--Anatoly Karpov.

The Filipino grandmaster joined the tournament as an outsider and the lowest-rated player among the four contenders. But everyone was amazed by his inspired play, finishing clear first with 4.5/6, 1.5 points ahead of Karpov, who he defeated in the second round. Torre achieved what nobody had done since the latter became world champion. His underdog tale made him an international chess sensation.

A TRUE CHAMPION

With all the successes he attained through the years, Torre has become a beacon for the next generations of chess players. In spite of that, he confessed a weakness that hindered him to achieve even greater accomplishments in his career. 

“I am not the type of player whose game is exceptional all the time. There are times moments wherein my performance is outstanding, there are also times when it is down. I had that moment that I felt I am undefeated, even if the opponent is a world champion,” the grandmaster said. 

At the peak point of his career in the early 1980s, Torre ranked No.17 in the world and was perceived as a possible future title contender after his outstanding performance at Marlboro-Loyola Kings Challenge Chess Tournament. He successfully qualified as a candidate for the world championship after tying with Lajos Portisch at first place in the 1982 Toluca Interzonal event.

He competed at the preliminary stage for the 1984 World Championship, where chess masters battle against each other to determine the challenger to the world champion. Unfortunately, he lost to Zoltán Ribli of Hungary, eliminating him from the tournament and took away his chance to be world champion. 

It was indeed a heartbreaking defeat that made the Filipino grandmaster somehow go semi-retired. During those times, Torre used his prominence in further promoting the chess movement in the Philippines. He hosted a daily one-hour TV show Chess Today and wrote a few books. Eventually, he bounced back and resumed playing. In 1992, in a battle of two chess legends Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky, Torre worked as a second for the former, who became his good friend.

“The measure of a successful chess player is actually during the times when you lose, not when you’re winning. Handling triumphs is easier. You feel like you’re up in the clouds and everything is rosy, positive, and heaven. The measure or challenge is how you handle moments when you’re down. That is the measure of champions. Regardless of your strengths, you’ll go through such times. Some players take losses so much that it affects their psyche and everything and destroys their game. But the solid champions when they get defeated recover fast. Like Karpov and Fischer,” he professed.

A book on Torre's legendary chess career published abroad

In 2016, at age 64, Torre set the record for the most number of participations in the World Chess Olympiad when he played his 23rd in Baku, Azerbaijan. He played strong in all 11 games, winning nine games and two draws and captured the bronze medal.  

For decades, he continues to represent the country in the world stage. His presence in the national team boosts the morale of our players, sending a message to the international stage that Pinoy contenders should be taken seriously. 

RIGHT MOVES OUTSIDE CHESS

Torre continues to play a vital role in the local chess movement as a coach for the national chess team, backed by the Philippine Sports Commission and as FIDE (International Chess Federation) Senior Trainer in the Professional Chess Trainers Association of the Philippines, which produces chess trainers in the country. 

 Outside the game, he works as a consultant for a real estate developer wherein he also applies the wisdom the board game has taught him. 

“In chess, there are lots of principles that you could apply in life. Like control the center, and control the pawns. Although pawns are small, generally, they are the ones that decide the outcome of the game. How would you translate that to real life? When the pawns are in disarray, the officers are ineffective too. You take care of those who are in the lower ranks because eventually, they will make you achieve your goal," he elucidated. 

GM Torre showing his many recognitions
and trophies displayed in his home

The chess legend is also an active member of the humanitarian organization Rotary International, particularly the Rotary Club of Sta. Mesa, Quezon City, since 2003. He professed that being a Rotarian serves as a means to further his advocacy.

During his club presidency, he initiated the First Governor’s Cup tournament in 2010 that garnered support from fellow Rotarians.

He hopes Rotary Governors would include chess in their projects since education, fellowship, and health are among the organization’s thrust. Torre explained that the game he champions covers the three since chess promotes mental health (improves focus, protects against degenerative diseases like dementia), creativity, critical thinking, and sportsmanship. 

“When kids get involved in sports, they become good citizens of the community. The get discipline and how to take care of their health,” he said. 

As the interview winds up, Torre toured this writer in the hallway of honors in his home in Quezon City jam-packed with trophies, plaques, and recognitions. The walk stopped in front of the huge glass case where his international major prizes are displayed, talking about the huge silver trophy amid the awards-- his 1974 Marlboro-Loyola Kings Challenge Chess Tournament title. Then the living legend was asked, “For how long will you be playing?” As long as his brilliant mind can. 

“Even I am already bedridden and my eyes are closed, I will still make my moves on the chessboard,” the grandmaster answered.  

Eugene Torre is indeed an epitome of passion, who lives and breathes chess, driven by the desire to win more and more supporters of the sport he loves throughout his existence. And he will not retire soon. Perhaps never. 

Me and The Living Legend himself!

 (Special thanks to Edmond Aguilar, past district governor of Rotary International District 3810,  for helping make the interview possible)