FIDE Master Christian Gian Karlo Arca collected his third gold medal by topping the rapid section of the 18th Asian Schools Chess Championships in Bangkok, Thailand on Wednesday, Dec. 11.

Arca drew with Turkmenistan’s Serdar Bayramov in 43 moves of a Queen’s Pawn game and then edged Mongolian FM Khishigbat Ulziikhishig via tiebreak to add to the blitz gold he snared last Tuesday, Dec. 10.

The 15-year-old Panabo, Davao del Norte native finished tied for first with Khishigbat, who halved the point with Malaysian Lim Feng Wei Ferris in 65 moves of a Benoni but won via the win-over-the-other rule to claim the crown.

Arca also relied on a red-hot start after stringing together five straight wins including that third-round triumph over Khishigbat that softened the impact of his sixth and penultimate round setback to China’s Cao Qingfeng.

Also coming through for the country were Arleah Cassandra Sapuan, Kate Nicole Ordizo and Beatrice Ann Bombales, who had a team bronze in the girls’ Under-17 division.

In all, Arca’s feat capped a solid performance by the Philippines, which went home with three gold, three silver and three bronzes.

He also teamed up with National Master Oscar Joseph Cantela and Lemmuel Jay Adena for the blitz team event gold.