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The quarterfinals of the 3rd BC Card Cup concluded on April 3 with Gu Li 9P defeating Kim Jiseok 8P. In other quarterfinal results, Park Junghwan 8P defeated Zhou Ruiyang 5P, Lee Sedol 9P defeated Chen Yaoye 9P and Heo Yeongho 8P defeated Zhong Wenjing 5P, leaving Gu as the only Chinese player in the semi finals, facing off against three Korean players.

In the semifinals, Lee will play Park and Heo will play Gu, setting up a possible Lee versus Gu final.

An interview with Lee Sedol

Below is an excerpt from a television interview with Lee after his quarterfinal win against Chen.

“This was a very intense game. Did you prepare for it?”
“No special preparation but I did want to dictate the direction of play to avoid too much fighting in the opening. While I did manage to avoid too much fighting in the opening, I wasn’t too pleased with my play today. My opening was not very good.”

“And the ko in the lower part of the board?”
“At the time I thought the ko would be very difficult under normal circumstances. However, even after I won the ko, the situation did not improve much for me.”

“I heard you and your family have taken up hiking?”
“Yes, we have been before. Now that spring has come, I’m looking forward to hiking more often with my family.”

“You will play Park Junghwan 9P next in the semi final. Is Park your preferred opponent?”
“Definitely not. Park is a very good player, very difficult to beat. It will be a very tough game. But, if I prepare well, I believe I can win.”

– Jingning; based on her original report at Go Game Guru, which includes more pictures and some game records. Also see: Commentary: Kim Jiseok vs Gu Li 3rd BC Card Cup

“It is fortunate that Japanese people seem not to be inclined to show their stress and frustration in violent acts,” reports Michael Redmond 9P — who’s just been confirmed as a participating professional in this year’s U.S. Go Congress — from his home in Japan outside Tokyo. “Instead people did hit the stores with heavy shopping, stockpiling basic foods such as rice, milk, bottled water, etc. Most of these are back in the stores now, but water is still difficult to get.

“After the quake there was a local gas shortage including the Kanto (Tokyo) area as well as the earthquake-damaged northeast. In the damaged areas the problem was compounded by difficulty in the logistics of getting it there. Since the victims in the disaster area need fuel to keep warm and to evacuate they will be helped first, and we will be waiting a bit longer for the gasoline to arrive. Apart from the logistics, the gas shortage is caused by the fact that some important gas depots/refineries were hit by the tsunamis that attacked the whole Pacific coast. The earthquake damage was not so bad actually, but the tsunami was off the expected scale and nothing could stop it. Gas stations in my area, which have been closed since the  earthquake hit, re-opened last Sunday. They apparently are getting gas and other necessities to the disaster areas now also.

“Since the nuclear energy plant has shut down, there’s obviously also a shortage of electric energy in northern Japan, not including Hokkaido, and we are subjected to scheduled power cutoffs. I’m not sure how far south this goes, but it’s at least as far as
Tokyo. The main inconvenience caused by the power cutoffs is that the trains are limited, in my case making travel to Tokyo less easy than usual.

“As to the go scene, people didn’t know about the power cutoffs or that the trains would slow down until March 14, so there were games as scheduled on that day, and some players didn’t manage to arrive in time and lost by forfeit. They postponed the March 17 games in Tokyo. Games were played on schedule on 3/24 and after, though some events have been postponed. Supposedly things will return close to normal next month.”
A boy waits in a line in front of a gas station in Kamaishi, northern Japan Monday, March 14, 2011 following the March 11 massive earthquake and tsunami. (AP Photo/Asahi Shimbun, Naoko Kawamura)

Iyama Yuta Evens the Judan. In the second round of the 49th Judan final on March 24, Iyama Yuta 9P tied the series 1-1 by defeating Cho U 9P by resignation. The third round will be played on April 7th. Park Yeonghun Takes Game 1 in Maxim Cup Final. In the first round of the 12th Maxim Cup final on March 21, Park Yeonghun 9P (l in photo) defeated Lee Changho 9P (r) by resignation. The Maxim Cup final is a best of three series and the second game will be played on April 7th.
– JustPlayGo; edited by Jake Edge