Mexico City - 1st Pair Go Tourney

Published on Friday, 22 February 2013 09:48

The Mexican Youth Go Community drew 31 pairs to their first Pair Go Tourney, held in December in Mexico City. “The kids wanted to play go with their parents but they didn’t know how, so they asked us for workshops and lessons,” reports organizer Siddhartha Avila. “Then we thought, why not make go an activity that can be enjoyed by the whole family, this way each family will spread the game even when their kids grow up and leave elementary school. We had a great response, with pairs including the kids, parents, relatives, or friends,” said Avila.

The Winners:

1st -Mariana (5th grader) and her mom
2nd - Melanie (2nd grader) and her dad;
3rd - Diego Armando (1st grader) and his mom. 

A special thanks goes to the Principal Marcela Zepeda, Go teacher Marcos Arámbula and Israel Rodriguez President of Asociación Mexicana de Go, who helped with the pairings. 

Choi Hyeonjae wins Amateur Kuksu

Published on Monday, 21 January 2013 21:55

Choi Hyeonjae (Photo: Tygem)Sponsored by the Dong-a Ilbo, Korea's leading newspaper, the Amateur Kuksu is Korea's leading amateur go tournament. The 46th holding of this event took place on December 15 and 16, 2012, at the Korean Baduk Association building in Seoul. Since the winner becomes the Korean player in the World Amateur Go Championship, it was only appropriate that the field of sixty-four included Kim Chanwoo, the first Korean to win the WAGC (in 1998), and Song Hongsuk, the fifth (in 2010). The field also included recent WAGC runner-ups Lee Hyunjoon and Choi Woosoo, 2012 Korea Prime Minister Cup winner Han Seungjoo, and 2011 KPMC runner-up Yu Byungyong. Kim Chanwoo, who turned in a glittering 10-1 performance in the 2012 National Baduk League, entered the Kuksu ranked 2nd in the senior division of Korea's amateur ranking system, while Song was ranked 13th and Choi Woosoo 2nd in the (stronger) junior division. Choi Woosoo's high rank came partly from winning the Lee Changho Cup in 2012.

The tournament was organized in the same way as the KPMC: six rounds played in two days. A notable loser in the first round was Jeon Junhak, winner of the 2012 Michuhol Cup, runner-up in the Lee Changho Cup, and holder of the number-one junior ranking. His loss came at the hands of Lee Juhyeong (11th junior ranking). Kim Chanwoo and Song Hongsuk also lost, as did Song Junhyup (18th jr), who walked away with most of the honors at the 2012 European Go Congress but now fell to Shin Yoonho (22nd jr).

The second round eliminated some more of Korea's best amateurs. Choi Hyeonjae, a quiet 20-year-old who likes children, who had recorded another 10-1 score in the National Baduk League, and who had beaten Song Hongsuk in round one, proceeded to upset the jovial Lee Hoseung (3rd jr) of pair-go fame. Six weeks before the Kuksu, Lee (this time with Jang Yunjeong) had won the International Amateur Pair Go Championship for a second straight year. Earlier in 2012 he had won his way into the BC Card Cup, LG Cup, and Olleh Cup, professional tournaments that reserve places for amateur participation. Getting these places and the chance to tackle and perhaps topple a big-name pro is a major goal for Korean amateurs, and Lee's triple success was a significant factor in his number-three junior ranking. Park Changmyeong, who had won places in the professional LG, Olleh, Myungin, and Samsung tournaments and was ranked junior 4th, lost to Han Seungjoo. Lee Hyunjoon also bowed out in this round.

The third round saw the depature of Choi Woosoo and Lee Juhyung, so of the contestants ranked in Korea's junior top twenty, only four were left in contention: Yu Byungyong (6th jr), Hong Mujin (8th jr), Kim Myeonghoon (9th jr), and Choi Hyeonjae (16th jr). Hong Mujin and Choi Hyeonjae met each other in the fourth round the next morning, the lower-ranked Choi winning. Kim Myeonghoon survived his game, but Yu was upset by Kim Chiwoo, who won the Cho Namchul Kuksu Cup, a national tournament for children, at age 11 in 2005, and KPMC champion Han Seungjoo was eliminated by Shin Yoonho.

In the semifinal round Kim Chiwoo scored another upset by downing Kim Myeonghoon, but Choi Hyeonjae finally overcame Shin Yoonho, and then won the deciding game with Kim to capture the Kuksu title. Besides earning a shot at becoming the sixth Korean world amateur champion in Sendai next September, Choi took home a prize of 2 million won (close to $2000) and improved his junior ranking from 16th to 7th. And Korea had again demonstrated its ability to stand rankings on their head and produce yet another young new title winner.

Successful Second Edition of SportAccord World Mind Games

Published on Thursday, 17 January 2013 03:54

The second edition of SportAccord World Mind Games in Beijing closed on 19 December 2012 and turned out as a great success. The cooperation of SportAccord, the Local Organising Committee and the participating International Federations of Chess, Bridge, Draughts, Go, Xiangqi (Chinese Chess) and International Mind Sports Association brought positive results and led to achieving the main objectives of the event:

1. Delivery of first class operations to 150 players from 39 countries and delivery of high-level competition with some of the top-ranked players in the world. BRIDGE: Bauke Muller (NED), Sjoert Brink (NED), Sylvie Willard (FRA), CHESS: Levon Aronian (ARM), Radjabov Teimour (AZE), Hou Yifan (CHN), Koneru Humpy (IND); DRAUGHTS: Alexander Georgiev (RU), Alexey Chizhov (RU), Zoja Golubeva (LAT), Nina Hoekman (NED), GO: Choi Chulhan (KOR), Li He (CHN); XIANGQI: Wang Tianyi (CHN), Chen Lichun (CHN).

2. Increase of the visibility of the event in China and worldwide through broadcast media. There was a significant growth in broadcast interest both within the host country China and overseas. An estimated 70 million households watched the Xiangqi and Go finals as CCTV-5 China aired key events for the first time. Host broadcaster Beijing TV showed at least 2 hours per day for eight days and provided an international feed. The same coverage was available on eleven international media platforms including Setanta Africa, ESPN Star Sports in Asia, Digisports Turkey, Ring TV Bulgaria and Solar Sports Philippines reaching 64 countries around the world.

3. Increase of the online and onsite activities. The participation in the online tournament increased 37% compared to last year and reached 380 000 players. A record 1.7 million games were played on Bridge Base Online. In addition, as part of the Social and Educational Programme, 5 visits by delegations of different sports and 5 visits of students to the venue took place during the event.

The long-term goals of the event will focus on the following strategic priorities:

- Asserting the position of SportAccord World Mind Games as the world's leading platform for mind sports by attracting further the world’s best players every year, and looking at long-term growth opportunities such as the consideration of new sports to the current sports programme;

- Expanding educational initiatives with schools and universities to increase popularity of mind sports with youth in China;

- Growing/stimulating participation in mind sports globally through expansion of initiatives on digital platforms.

The next two editions of SportAccord World Mind Games in 2013 and 2014 will take place in Beijing, China.

SportAccord World Mind Games Official Partners:

Press Release - SportAccord

Cuba: Schedule of 2013 National Events

Published on Thursday, 27 December 2012 23:46

Ambassadors of 2012 SportAccord World Mind Games

Published on Tuesday, 04 December 2012 15:01

The ambassadors of the upcoming edition of SportAccord World Mind Games have been announced. Each of the participating sports; Bridge, Chess, Draughts, Go, Xiangqi will be represented and promoted by the following players; 

Bridge: Sjoert Brink; From: The Netherlands, 2012-No. 6 World Bridge Games Open Teams, 
No. 2 European Open Team Championships-2, No. 1 Bermuda Bowl-1, No. 16 World Knockout Teams Open, No 6 Mixed Swiss Teams
Chess: Hou Yifan; From China, FIDE Title: Grand Master, Woman Grand Master, No. 1 female under 18 and No. 3 female active player in the world
Draughts: Alexey Chizhov; From: Russia, 10-time World Champion (individual), 4-time World Champion (teams), European Champion (Blitz) in 2007, European Champion in 2012
Go: Missingham Joanne Jia Jia; From: Chinese Taipei, No. 1 Women Champion in Taiwan, 
4 victories in tournaments in Taiwan in 2012, No. 1 in women’s selection tournament in 2010 Asian Games, No. 1 Oceania Toyota and Denso Cup in 2008
Xiangqi (Chinese Chess): Chan Chun Kit; From: China, Asian Grand Master, International Master, Bronze Medal of 2nd World Mind Sport Game (Xiangqi Men Team), Champion of 2009 and 2011 Hong Kong Open Xiangqi Tournament (Grade A).

The ambassadors will be the faces of their sport during the event; they will play key roles in the Cultural and Social Programme of the event as well as represent their sport in the traditional and social media. To find out more go to www.worldmindgames.net

SportAccord World Mind Games are a multi-sports event which highlights the great value of mind sports. The world's best players deliver top-level performances and create new valuable experiences based on intelligence, strategy and exercise of mind.

Live Broadcasts of the 2nd SAWMG

Published on Monday, 03 December 2012 02:47

During the 8 days of the event (12-19 December), there will be live broadcasts of the competition. The live broadcasts will take place on the following YouTube channel.

The go section of the daily coverage will be anchored by Chris Garlock of the American Go E-Journal. Michael Redmond, 9 dan pro, will provide live commentaries on the matches.

Here is the schedule of the go section of the live broadcasts:

• 12 December: 15:30 – 17:00 local time; 7:30 – 09:00 GMT
• 13 December: 17:00 – 18:00 local time; 9:00 – 10:00 GMT
• 14 December: 16:30 – 17:15 local time; 8:30 – 09:15 GMT
• 15 December: 16:15 – 17:00 local time; 8:15 – 09:00 GMT
• 16 December: 17:00 – 18:00 and 20:00~ local time; 9:00 – 10:00 and 12:00~ GMT
• 18 December: 17:00 – 18:00 local time; 9:00 – 10:00 GMT

The full schedule of broadcasts is available here.

2012 International Go Symposium: Video Recordings

Published on Monday, 19 November 2012 01:33

Sponsored by the International Go Federation the 2012 International Go Symposium was held on the opening weekend of the U.S. Go Congress at Black Mountain, North Carolina on August 4-5, 2012.

A YouTube channel of video recordings of the event is now available on the  2012 International Go Symposium's website.

InterAcademy Go Cup

Published on Sunday, 18 November 2012 08:12

The Cuban Go Academy recently completed its last tournament of 2012, the InterAcademy Go Cup, with the participation of 20 players representing eight academies.

The winner was Mr. Kenishiro Kawaji 5-dan, a guest player from Japan. He works for the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA.)

2nd SportAccord World Mind Games Online Tournaments

Published on Friday, 09 November 2012 20:13

Sun NaijingThe online adjunct to the upcoming SportAccord World Mind Games attracted 688 go players from 48 countries, ranging from Argentina to Zimbabwe. More than half were from Japan, which produced last year's online winner, but this year the recipient of a free trip to Beijing is Chinese: Sun Naijing, who hails from Hefei in Anhui Province.

Mr Sun started playing go at age nine and kept it up through university studies and subsequent employment. 'Go never leaves me,' he says. In a go career spanning nearly four decades he has won numerous provincial amateur tournaments in Anhui and has thrice finished among the top ten in the massive Evening News Cup, China's premier amateur event. In 1996 he defeated Chen Linxin (9p) in the pro-amateur part of that event. 'I learn a lot by playing go,' Mr Sun adds. 'I like it.'

Mr Sun will join winners of similar online tournmants in bridge, chess, draughts, and xiangqi in observing the world's best players in action in Beijing next month.

International Amateur Pair-Go Championship 2012

Published on Thursday, 08 November 2012 01:01

Yunjeong (left) and Hoseung - KoreaOn a Saturday afternoon, November 3, thirty-one pairs representing twenty-one countries/territories/continents sat down at the Hotel Metropolitan Edmont in Tokyo to play the first round of the 23rd International Amateur Pair-Go Championship. It was overall a young group, including two middle-school students, six high-school students, and nineteen university students. Ninety minutes later the round was over. The pairs from Korea and Chinese Taipei had defeated the pairs from Ireland and the Kyushu-Okinawa region of Japan, and the husband-wife Hiraoka pair, arguably the leading Japanese entry, had defeated the Japanese pair from Hokkaido. The Chinese pair did not participate this year.

And then the festivities began. The 62 players were partnered with 62 pair-go dignitaries, supporters, and volunteers, including a dozen or so professional players, for a pair-go friendship match.

Manja (left) and Michael Marz with Children - GermanyNational costumes were much in evidence, including the Irish leine, Japanese kimono, Japanese archers' outfits, Peruvian woolen ponchos, aboriginal costumes from Taiwan, dazzling Thai jackets, and striking traditional garments from Czechia, France, Germany, Norway, Russia, and the Ukraine. The friendship games were followed by a buffet dinner party with speeches, an award for the Japanese pair that won the gold medal at the World Mind Sports Games in Lille last August, and a toast to the continued success of pair go.

The next day play continued in earnest, without national costumes, but with fashion designer Koshino Junko heading a panel that judged the players' attire. On the go board, the pair from Chinese Taipei lost to a Japanese pair in the third round, but the Korean pair and the Hiraoka pair sailed undefeated into the fifth round, where they played the game that decided the championship. Nine-dan pros Ishida Yoshio and Michael Redmond gave simultaneous commentaries on the game in Japanese and English. Both commentators agreed that two forcing moves made by white (the Hiraoka pair) in the bottom right corner had been a mistake, giving up the opportunity to harass the black corner group. The Korean pair (Jang Yunjeong and Lee Hoseung) went on to attack and kill the adjacent white group, winning by resignation. This was the ninth championship for Korea in this event, including the last four in a row.

Lui Lam Postigo (left) and Rios Joels - PeruJapanese pairs monopolized second to seventh places, but the Russian pair (Natalia Kovaleva and Dmitriy Surin) and the European champion pair (Klara Zaloudkova and Jan Hora of Czechia) won their final games against Japanese opponents to finish tenth and seventeenth, respectively. The pair from Chinese Taipei (Lu Yu-hua and Tsai Tong-yu) dropped into eighth place by losing in the last round to the Japanese pair that finished third (Arai Naoko and Kuramoto Minoru).

And then the festivities resumed. There were prizes for the new Korean champions, including air tickets to Hawaii; prizes for the second and third place finishers; prizes for nine Japanese pairs who finished first, second, and third in each of the A, B, and C blocks in the huge parallel handicap tournament (130 pairs), and then the best dresser prizes, guessing game prizes, fellowship prizes, and lottery prizes, plus another sumptuous buffet dinner, all demonstrating once again that the Japan Pair Go Association not only know how to organize a good tournament; they also know how to throw a smashing party.

Full results and players' pictures are here.