All but one member of the Philippine women's team competing at the World Chess Olympiad, scheduled for September 15-27 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, will take part in the Philippine National Women's Invitational Championships, which opens on Tuesday and runs until September 8.

"It will be our final push for the Olympiad," Janelle Mae Frayna, the country's first and only Woman Grandmaster to date, told The STAR.

Ruelle Canino, Shania Mae Mendoza and Mhage Sebastian will also see action in the 13-round tournament, while Jan Jodilyn Fronda has begged off.

Also competing are Bernadette Galas, Jemaicah Yap Mendoza, Marie Antoinette San Diego, Jersey Marticio, Allaney Jia Doroy, Francois Marie Magpily, Cherry Ann Mejia, Kate Nicole Ordizo, Franchesca Largo and Diana Ramos.

The invitational serves as a tune-up of sorts: with the Olympiad just over a week after the event concludes, the tournament gives the squad competitive practice against the country's top women players, including rising juniors who did not make the national team.

Ms. Frayna and Ms. Canino, together with Ms. Fronda, campaigned in Europe in several tournaments last month, and they are expected to draw on that experience as they pursue a stronger finish in the Alicia tournament.

The Frayna-led national chess players are aiming to eclipse their Group B gold-medal finish at the last Olympiad edition in Budapest two years ago. A stronger result in Samarkand would put the Philippines in contention among the higher divisions of the biennial tournament, which brings together national teams from chess federations worldwide under the International Chess Federation (FIDE).

Four other events were staged simultaneously: the National Juniors, Children, Youth Selection and FIDE Classification tournaments. — Joey Villar