American Go E-Journal

Hotta Yumi, author of the award winning Hikaru no Go manga, delighted kids and teens in the Youth Room at the U.S. Go Congress on Monday.  The second annual Hikaru no Go Trivia Contest was a huge success, with Hotta (seated) serving as the official judge.  Fifteen kids competed in teams of three, trying to answer questions that were so difficult even Hotta was often stumped.  Reigning Hikaru trivia champion Bijan Saniee (standing, far right, in photo below) led his team to victory, once again showing his profound knowledge of the most obscure bits of detail from the popular manga.  Ten-year-old Austin Liao (at far left in photo at right) gave him a run for his money though, popping his hand up repeatedly, and correctly answering some of the most challenging questions of the afternoon.  After Team Bijan secured their victory, Hotta Yumi signed autographs and took photos with fans. Winston Jen (at left in photo at left), who donated 1,000 sets of the manga to the AGA, competed on a team as well.  A special moment came when Hotta presented Jen with a thank-you gift , an original hand-drawn picture of Sai and Hikaru, dedicated to Jen by name, and signed by both Hotta and Hikaru artist Takeshi Obata.  Test your own Hikaru knowledge with this HNG Quiz with some of the questions from the contest: A: Who drank his coffee black, even when he was in middle school? B: Who was Isumi’s roommate in China? C: What is Akira’s mother named?  D: How is Hikaru able to take the Insei test, even though he missed the deadline? E: On what day does Sai disappear, and how can you tell? Click here and you could be a winner!
– Paul Barchilon, Youth Editor; photos by Chris Garlock