XIE HE WINS THE FIRST ROUND IN THE NONGSHIM CUP: China’s Xie He 7P defeated Japan’s Iyama Yuta 9P by resignation in the first round of the 11th Nongshim Cup. This is the second stage of the three-stage tournament, a team competition between Korea, China, and Japan. As players from each team lose, they are eliminated from competition until no other opponents remain. Korea has dominated this competition since it started in 2000, winning 8 out of 10 Nongshim Cups.
CHO HYEYEON TAKES FIRST GAME IN WOMEN’S MYEONGIN TITLE MATCH:
Cho Hyeyeon 8P got off to a good start in her challenge of Rui Naiwei 9P for the Korean Women’s Myeongin (J: Meijin) title, winning the first game on January 15th by resignation. Rui has held this title since 2000 except for losing it in 2002 to Cho. Since then Cho, who is more than twenty years younger than Rui, has challenged four more times without success. Rui, who continues to dominate the women’s titles in Korea, currently holds both of the current titles, the Myeongin and the Women’s Kuksu, which she has held six times since 2000. Cho has held the Women’s Kuksu twice, in 2003 and 2004. – Bill Cobb, from Go News, Sensei’s Library, GoGameWorld
CHO U GOES ONE UP IN KISEI: On January 14-15, Cho U 9P won the first game in his challenge of Yamashita Keigo 9P for the Kisei title. Not only is this one of the top seven titles in Japan that Cho has never won, he’s never even challenged for the Kisei before. Yamashita has held it five times, including the last four years. Traditionally, the first game of this title match is played outside of Japan; this time it was in Taipei, Taiwan. The next game in the best-of-seven-games title match will be in Nagoya, Japan, on January 27-28. – Bill Cobb from Go News, Sensei’s Library, GoGameWorld
KOREAN AMATEUR TEEN UPSETS LEE CHANGHO IN BC CARD CUP: Han Taehee, a 17-year-old Korean amateur 6-dan, defeated Lee 
Changho 9p by resignation in the first round of the 2nd BC Card Cup, an enormous international event. There are forty players from Korea, including five amateurs, twenty-one from China, including Gu Li 9P who won this title last year, but only two from Japan and one from Taiwan. Happily for the Japanese, who continue to struggle in international events, both their representatives won their first round games on January 16th: Iyama Yuta 9P defeated 6-dan amateur Na Hyun of Korea, and Yamada Kimio 9P defeated Zhong Wenjing 5P of China. Yamada faces Yoo Changhyuk 9P of Korea next and Iyama’s opponent will be Niu Yutian 7P of China.- from Go News, Sensei’s Library, GoGameWorld & JustPlayGo.com
