Edward Zhang 6d won Virginia State Championship finals over the holidays and is now the current Virginia State Champ with Qingbo Zhang 5d runner up for the second year in a row. The four competitors in the two-round knockout final won their spots by being the top finishing Virginia residents in the Virginia Open played in December. Games were played on OGS; the tournament was organized with the help of Baduk Club. Past champion Josh Lee 6d could not participate to defend his title as he has moved out of state. “I was disappointed with my prelim performance,” says champion Zhang, “But I wanted to inspire my 7-year-old daughter, who learned Go just a few weeks before, that daddy doesn’t just ‘talk the talk.'” Click here to see the final game between Edward Zhang 6d and Qingbo Zhang 5d.
-report by Gary Smith, photo provided by Edward Zhang
