American Go E-Journal » 2012 » December

Kim Myung-wan 9P to Comment Live on Samsung Cup Final

Saturday December 8, 2012

Kim Myung-wan 9p will be providing live game commentary on the upcoming contest between Gu Li 9P, one of China’s strongest players, and Lee Sedol 9P, Korea’s strongest player, in the final of the 17th Samsung Cup. The match will take place in Shanghai on Dec. 11-13, and Kim’s live English-language commentary will be on the Tygem go server the first 15 minutes of every hour on Tygem’s “Korea 1” server. The games, which could last four or five hours, are set to start at 6p West Coast time (9p EST), on Dec. 10, 11 and 12. In their lifetime record against each other, Gu Li has a slight lead of 15-14. photo: Kim Myung-wan 9p at the 2012 Cotsen Open/AGA-Tygem Pro Qualifier; photo by Chris Garlock

Categories: World

Sooil Kim Tops Atlanta Mega Mart Go Tournament

Saturday December 8, 2012

Sooil Kim (center) took first place in the December 1 Atlanta Mega Mart Go Tournament A section; Vladimir Rerikh (right) was second and Neirong Xiao (left) was third. The Atlanta Go Club hosted, with the sponsorship of Mega Mart, a local Korean supermarket. “This is the second time Mega Mart has sponsored a go tournament and it plans to continue to support go activity in metro Atlanta in the future,” reports organizer Jeffery Kerlagon. Cash and gift cards totaling $700 were awarded as prizes to top winners winners in four divisions. The one-day, three-round event was attended by 35 players. “While the Georgia Bulldogs were getting defeated by Alabama in football, the Atlanta go community faced strong competition from Tennessee,” says Kerlagon. Yin Huasong & Shawn Ray from Tennessee took 1st place in their respective divisions, while Sooil Kim was a repeat winner from last year in one of the High Dan Divisions. “Everyone had a great time and it was very inspiring to see go players from Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia battle it out over the go boards. Young Brandon Zhou, although not placing in this tournament showed that he will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years.” The Atlanta Chinese Go Association and the Korean Chess Club bring many strong players to this competition.

Winner’s Report: High Dan Division A 1st place – Sooil Kim; 2nd place – Vladimir Rerikh; 3rd place – Neirong Xiao.
High Dan Division B 1st place – Yin Huasong; 2nd place – Won So Choe; 3rd place – Frank Luo
Dan Division 1st place – Shawn Ray; 2nd place – TIE between Danni Chen & Lixian Liu; 3rd place – Seth Cardew
Kyu Division 1st place – Jackson Zhang; 2nd place – Hiroshi Yamane
photo by Jeff Kerlagon

Categories: U.S./North America

Last Call for US–Cuba Friendship Games

Saturday December 8, 2012

Time is running out to join a group of US players traveling to Havana, Cuba February 15 – 21, 2013. The trip is being organized to play go with counterparts in the Cuban go community as part of a “people to people” trip conducted under a US Treasury Department license for such travel. “Using go as a way to forge links between people of different countries, especially countries whose relations are as fraught as Cuba and the US, is very much in line with the vision of Iwamoto-sensei,” says AGA President Andy Okun. “This is a wonderful opportunity.” Besides a go competition February 16-17, the trip will also feature an itinerary of cultural/educational activities such as a visit to Finca Vigia, Hemingway’s home in Cuba. “It is still possible to add additional travelers, but it is necessary to act quickly,” says organizer Robert Gilman. “Though there is not a definite deadline at this time, the longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to accommodate additional travelers.” Email goincuba@gmail.com for information.

Categories: U.S./North America

EuroGoTV Update: December 08

Saturday December 8, 2012

La Pedra Diciembre 2012: The La Pedra Diciembre, played on 12/01 in Barcelona, Spain, was won by Carles Mitjans 6k, in second was Gerard Morera 7k and third was Bruno Domenjoud 16k… Serbian women Go championship 2012: The Serbian women Go championship 2012, played on 12/01 in Nis, Serbia, was won by Marta Jorgacevic 9k, second was Maja Mitic 17k and third was Bilijana Mirkovic 20k… 38th Serbian championship: The 38th Serbian championship (r), played from 11/30-12/02 in Nis, Serbia, was won by Dusan Mitic 6d, second was Lazar Manjlovic 5d and third was Milosav Jukic 5d… Ukrainian Championship (Hight League) 2012 (12/05): The Ukrainian Championship (Hight League) 2012, played from 11/24-12/02 in Kyiv, Ukraine, was won by Andrii Kravets 6d (left), second was Bohdan Zhurakovskyi 5d and thrid was Volodymyr Kokozei 4d… Austrian Championship Finals 2012: The Austrian Championship Finals 2012, took place last weekend; Schayan Hamrah 4d and defending his title of Austrian Champion managed to defeat tournament favorite Viktor Lin 5, but Schayan lost to last year’s runner up Martin Unger 3d in a previous round, Schayan and Viktor will play the decisive game in two weeks to determine the Austrian Champion 2012… Offene Trierer Jugendmeisterschaft 2012: The Offene Trierer Jugendmeisterschaft 2012 played on 12/02 in Trier, Germany, was won by Emanuel Schaaf 9k, in second was Ryoichi Katoh 6k and third was Yu-Kai Law 7k… La Carboneria 2012: The La Carboneria, played on 12/01 in Sevilla, Spain, was won by Raul Aguilera 7k, second was Adrian Dominguez 9k and third was Miguel Cases 10k… Cyprus Go Championship 2012 (r): Dimitris Regginos 1d successfully defended Cyprus Go Championship title 12/01-02 in Nicosia, Cyprus (report/photo by EJ Cyprus correspondent Nicholas Roussos). Polish Championship Side Tournament 2012: The Polish Championship Side Tournament, played from 12/01-02 in Katowice, Poland, was won by Dariusz Bednarczyk 3k, second was Marcel Zantman 4k and in thrid was Tomasz Podolec 4k… SirDango-Turnajaiset 2012: The SirDango-Turnajaiset 2012, played on 12/01 in Vantaa, Finland, was won by Eetu Erkkila 1d, second was Olli Pulkkinen 1d and third was Eerika Norvio 1k… 461st Velika Gorica weekend-go-tournament 2012: The 461st Velika Gorica weekend-go-tournament, played on 12/01 in Velika Gorica, Croatia, was won by Mladen Smud 1k, second was Robert Jovicic 2k and third was Nikola Primetica 4k… Polish Championship League 2012: The Polish Championship League, played from 11/29-12/02 in Katowice, Poland, was won by Stanislaw Frejlak 4d, second was Krzysztof Giedrojc 4d and third was Kamil Chwedyna 4d… Korean Ambassador`s Cup 2012: The Korean Ambassador`s Cup, played from 11/24-25 in Espoo, Finland was won by Juri Kuronen 5d, in second was Juusi Nyyssonen 4d (photo) and third was Pekka Lukkari 4d… 6th Nostalgic Cup 2012: The 6th Nostalgic Cup, played from 11/24-25 in Budapest, Hungary, was won by Bulcsu Fajszi 8k, second was Gergely Meszaros 2k and third was Judit Bovizne Detre 19k…
– adapted from EuroGoTV, which includes winner reports, crosstabs, game records and photos. Edited by Taylor Litteral

Categories: Europe

Redmond to Provide Live Commentaries on World Mind Sports Games

Friday December 7, 2012

Michael Redmond 9P will provide live commentaries on the SportsAccord World Mind Sports Games, scheduled for December 12-19. 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, with Redmond providing live commentaries on the matches.

Here’s 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.

Categories: SportAccord World Mind Games,World

Sun Bests Irvington in Portland

Thursday December 6, 2012

Sun Montesorri School beat Irvington Elementary School in a five person, three round, two team match, 11 wins to 4, on Sunday, Dec. 2nd. Peter Freedman and Fritz Balwit, Irvington and Sun Montesorri’s coaches, respectively, co-directed the tournament. Irvington School Chess and Go Club Parent Coordinator Jessica Nesseler-Cass transported four of the Irvington players, and Ellis’ mom contributed a loaf of banana bread. Leading the way for Sun Montesorri with three wins was Amos, with Holden and Hansen winning twice. Rakan, Hikaru, and Tessa played in a tournament for the first time. Rakan and Hikaru are both brand new to the game, and Tessa just began playing this summer. Hikaru’s dad is very into Manga, which is where Hikaru found Hikaru no Go and wanted to learn the game. The venue was Mt. Tabor Church’s Taborspace, where the church generously lets us play for free on Sunday afternoons. Full results: Round 1: Amos b. McCaleb, Hansen b. Ellis, Holden b Noah, Niko l. to Sam, Dylan b. Rakan (1st player is Montesorri, 2nd, Irvington; Round 2: Amos b. Ellis, Hansen b. McCaleb, Holden b. Sam, Nick b Noah, Hikaru (YES! A local Go player named Hikaru!) b. Rakan; Round 3: Holden l. to McCaleb, Dylan l. to Ellis, Hansen l. to Tessa, Amos b. Sam, Niko b. Hikaru. -Tourney report by Peter Freedman

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

Pandanet-AGA City League Registration Deadline 12/20

Thursday December 6, 2012

There are just two weeks left to join the new Pandanet-AGA City League. This new event features year-round regional competitions between teams of players from different North American cities or regions, with a prize pot of $15,000 for the A-League. Deadline to register is December 20, with the first season set to begin January 1, 2013 and concludes with a final round in Seattle during the 2013 US Go Congress. There are already teams registered from Brentwood TN, Memphis TN, Syracuse NY, Research Triangle NC, Boston, and Southern California. Additional teams are being formed in DC-NOVA, the San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Monica and Vancouver. “Those from other cities and regions in US, Canada, and Mexico and interested in joining should get organized soon,” say League organizers. “We look forward to a full slate of exciting competitions from many teams!” Click here for more information, rules and registration. Email questions to cityleague@usgo.org.

Categories: Pandanet-AGA City League,U.S./North America

Missingham Named Go Ambassador at World Mind Games

Thursday December 6, 2012

Joanne “Jiajia” Missingham (r) has been named Go Ambassador at the upcoming SportAccord World Mind Games, which begin next week in Beijing, China. Other ambassadors include Hou Yifan (chess), Sjoert Brink (bridge), Chan Chun Kit (Xiangqi) and Alexey Chizhov (draughts). Missingham will also participate in the North American Go Convention next February.

Currently training in Taiwan, Missingham 6P was the runner-up at the first Bingsheng Cup Women’s World Championship in 2010. Her ranking in Taiwan Go Association has risen rapidly, putting her within striking range of top male Taiwanese players. Next year Missingham will be the only Taiwanese female playing in the Chinese Women’s A League, arguably the world’s top women’s go league. Missingham, born in Australia, lived in California for several years before moving to China in 2008 to study go, and joined the Taiwan Qiyuan in 2010. She’s also known as an artistic performer, especially in music and calligraphy; click here for a video of her recent lute solo. Also famous for her philanthropy and battles against sexism, in 2011 she led a tremendous charity effort for Japan after the Fukushima earthquake and she led a protest against unfair rules on female players’ tournament fees in a tournament in Taiwan.

Missingham will return to the U.S. and teach go in both New York/New Jersey and Washington DC during the North American Go Convention (NAGC) February 8-17, 2013. The NAGC website has been updated to clarify tournament schedule and locations, and information is also available in Chinese and Korean. While the two open championship tournaments, as well as the Pair Go and Blitz championship are all in the weekends of Feb. 9-10 and Feb 16-17, there are also rated games and teaching activities during weekday evenings 2/8, 2/12-2/15.

The NAGC organizing committee has been joined by two ‘veteran’ U.S. Go Congress tournament directors, Sam Zimmerman and Christopher Sira. Pre-register before 12/25 to avoid the upcoming 10% price increase.
– reported by Edward Zhang; photo: Missingham at the 2010 Bingsheng

Categories: U.S./North America,World

Free Teaching Workshop with Yang Yu Chia Dec. 15

Wednesday December 5, 2012

Yang Yu Chia, general secretary of the Ing Chang Ki Goe Foundation, will introduce his innovative method of teaching go to children and beginners on Saturday Dec. 15, 2012 at the American Ing Goe Center in Menlo Park, CA. Yang has years of experience with teaching kids, and organizes and supervises the World Youth Go Championships every year. The seminar is free and open to anyone teaching or interested in teaching go, and begins at 2:00 pm. The American Ing Goe Center is at 887 Oak Grove Avenue in Menlo Park, CA.

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

US Youth Championship Jan. 19

Tuesday December 4, 2012

The United States Youth Go Championships will be held Saturday, January 19th, on KGS. The tourney will determine National Dan, Single Digit Kyu (SDK), and Double Digit Kyu (DDK) Champions. The winners will receive trophies, and prizes will be awarded in the following brackets: 5-7 dan 1-4 dan, 1-4 kyu, 5-9 kyu, 10-15 kyu, 16-20 kyu, 21-25 kyu, 26 -30 kyu (depending on number of registrants). The qualifiers will use several formats for pairing, and all dan level youth will compete in an open section. The top four eligible youth will then move on to a double elimination final held on January 20th, and continuing the following weekend. Contestants will also be entered into a pool to receive partial scholarships to either the AGA Summer Youth Go Camp, or the US Go Congress, courtesy of the AGF, 16 Scholarships will be awarded.

The Junior Division is for youth under 12, the Senior Division is for youth under 16 as of August 15, 2013. Only US Citizens under 16 may enter the finals, youth who are under 18 may compete in the qualifiers and kyu brackets, and so may residents who are not citizens. To register, e-mail youth@usgo.org with your name, AGA #, date of birth, AGA rating, KGS ID, and citizenship. You may enter at a rank higher than your official AGA rank, but may not enter at a lower one. The registration deadline is Sunday, January 13th. For more info, see the USYGC page. -Paul Barchilon E-J Youth Editor. Photo: USYGC Sr. Division Champion Calvin Sun 7d, (at left) competing against Alexandru-Petre Pitrop, of Romaniam at the 2012 World Youth Go Championships, in Luoyang, China. Photo by Abby Zhang.

Categories: Europe,U.S./North America,World,Youth

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