Youth « American Go E-Journal

‘Learn to Play Go’ Brings Game to Elementary School Students

Monday April 21, 2014

“We just finished our ‘Learn to Play Go’ presentation at Sedgwick Elementary School, in Cupertino, CA, reports Wenguang Wang. “Yanping Zao and I presented go to four classes of third-graders in four 30-minute sessions (over 90 kids total). Since we have done this every year for Sedgewick’s Annual Discovery Day, most of the kids in third grade or higher have been exposed to go. During the event, we talked about some fun facts of go, taught them the rules, and everybody played a few 9×9 games. Most kids loved the game and many were interested to visit our Santa Clara Youth Go Club to have more fun playing go,” adds Wang. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Photo by Yanping Zhao: Wang teaching students at Sedgwick Elementary.

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

Miichigan & Toronto Vie for Collegiate Go League Championship Saturday on KGS

Friday April 18, 2014

After a convincing performance against lower seeds Yale and U Maryland last Saturday, the two top seeds of the Collegiate Go League, University of Michigan and University of Toronto, are vying for the championship title this Saturday, April 19 at 1 pm (EST) on KGS. Top boards will have live professional commentary and will be announced throughout KGS; head to the ‘Collegiate Go League’ room to catch the action and see who will be crowned ACGA university champion for season 3 and receive the coveted cash prize and ACGA Cup. Commentary will begin around 1:30 pm after matches commence.
– Cole Pruitt

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

Wang Chen Wins 2014 World Students Go Oza

Monday April 14, 2014

Wang Chen, one of the ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ who rule China’s amateur rating list, won the 12th World Students Go Oza Championship, held in late February in Toyko.

Wang (right) defeated Ken (Kai Kun) Xie of New Zealand, Japan’s Yamikumo Tsubasa, Go Risa, also from Japan, and Chung Chen-En of Taiwan. Yamikumo, Go, and Chung did not lose to anyone else, so they finished as part of the four-way tie for runner-up. Tie-breaking points put Yamikumo second, Chung third, and Go fourth. Taiwan’s Hu Shih-Yun also lost only one game and came in fifth. The opponent she lost to was the USA’s Maojie Xia, who had played the two Japanese and finished a highly commendable sixth.

Viktor Ivanov (Russia, 9th place) and Kwan King-Man (Hong Kong, 10th place) matched Maojie Xia by winning two games apiece, and although Yanqi Zhang (France, 12th place) won only once, the opponent she beat was Zhou Shiying, the Chinese female player. At both the reception and the awards ceremony, officials in the All Japan Students Go Association, which handled all the organizational work (drinking party included), remarked on the rising level of play in countries outside the Far East.
– based on a more extensive report on the IGF news feed, which includes complete results and clickable game records.

Categories: Japan,World,Youth

Applications Encouraged for 2014 International Collegiate Go Tournament

Friday April 11, 2014

The 2014 International Collegiate Go Tournament is now accepting applications. To be held in Hong Kong July 7-13, the second annual event, hosted by the Ing Foundation, is open to current, future, or recently graduated college students, both undergraduate and graduate, who will or has attended school in 2014. Players of all strengths are encouraged to apply; the tournament is divided into both a kyu and dan division.

The sponsors pay for student’s room, board, and the tours that take place during the event; students will be responsible for paying their airfare to reach the tournament, and any personal expenses during the tournament such as souvenirs and night life entertainment. “This is a truly unique experience as the Shanghai Ing Foundation does not spare any expense during the planning of this event,” says a post on the American Collegiate Go Association’s website.

While there’s no deadline for application, those interested should apply early as the selection process will be done on a first-come first-serve basis.
– photo: at the 2013 International Collegiate Go Tournament

Categories: World,Youth

Teacher of the Year Nominations Sought

Tuesday April 8, 2014

Nominations for the American Go Foundation’s Teacher of the Year award are now open. The award is presented each year at the U.S. Go Congress and recognizes an outstanding American teacher. The winner will receive an all expenses paid trip to the congress. To be eligible, a teacher must be a member of the AGA, have been teaching go to children for at least two hours a week (during the school year) for two years, have started a go club or organization for youth, and have helped their students enter appropriate tournaments, if possible. If you would like to nominate someone for this award, including yourself, e-mail mail@agfgo.org. Nominations are due by May 5th and should include a description of the teacher’s activities, how long they have been teaching, and how many students attend their program. – Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Photo: Last year’s winner Richard Moseson from New York. To read more about Richard’s work, click here.

Categories: U.S. Go Congress,U.S./North America,Youth

Yen and Zhou Win WYGC Qualifiers

Saturday April 5, 2014

Albert Yen 6d and Brandon Zhou 4d both won 2-0 in the final rounds of the Ing Foundation’s World Youth Goe Qualifier, held in Menlo Park CA on March 29th. Yen, who is 14 and lives in Illinois, squared off against Aaron Ye 6d, who is competing in the Senior Division for the first time – after having dominated the Jr. Division for several years. Meanwhile, Zhou, age 10, defeated Ary Alden Cheng, to win the Jr. Division. Zhou hails from Atlanta GA, and is one of the most promising youngsters on the national scene. He only recently began professional lessons, as there are no pros in Atlanta, and has been studying with Alexander Dinerchtein online. Both boys will travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for the World Youth Go Championships, August 13-17. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Photos by Ernest Brown: Albert Yen 6d (l) and Brandon Zhou 4d (r).

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

Go Camp Registration Opens

Tuesday April 1, 2014

The AGA Go Camp is pleased to announce that registration for the 2014 camp is now open. Camp will be held from August 3 to August 9, the week before Go Congress, at YMCA Camp Kresge in White Haven, PA, about a 2 hour drive from New York City. Camp directors Amanda Miller and Nano Rivera invite campers of all skill levels, and between the ages of 8 and 18, to join them for a week of go-playing and fun. Youth who played in the NAKC or the Redmond Cup are eligible for a $400 scholarship, and need-based scholarships of up to $250 are also available. For more information on the latest camp-related news, and to download the registration forms, please visit the camp website at http://www.gocampeast.org/. Any questions can be e-mailed to Amanda Miller at agagocampeast@gmail.com. – Story and Photo by Amanda Miller

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

Go Spotting: Teen Wolf Takes Sente

Tuesday March 25, 2014

MTV’s Teen Wolf has shattered the Go Spotting record, featuring go four weeks in a row, on a show that’s not about go. With a viewership of 3.5 million, repeated mentions of the game, and even a summary of the main goals, local clubs could soon be seeing a surge of new players if even a fraction of those viewers become curious about go and learn to play. This week’s episode, entitled “The Divine Move” both starts and ends with go. Early in the episode Mrs. Yukimura (Tamlyn Tomita) advises a desperate Stiles (Dylan O’Brien) while the family is seated around a go board “he made a powerful move by splitting the two of you.” “So what’s our move?” responds her daughter Kira (Arden Cho), as she places a stone on the board. “The Nogitsune has had sente until this point, what you need is a ‘Divine Move’ in order to turn this game around,” responds her mother. Stiles does find a divine move, in the story arc at least, and his friends defeat the Nogitsune at last. Towards the end of the episode, Kira’s parents are seen picking up the pieces from the go board, drawing a conclusion to the story arc (and the season). Full episodes of Teen Wolf can be streamed on the MTV website here. As an added bonus, in the after show (Wolf Watch) series creator Jeff Davis also talks briefly about go. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor. Photo from the MTV website: Kira places a stone on the board, while Stiles talks to Mrs. Yukimura.

Categories: Go Spotting,U.S./North America,Youth

AGA Go Camp Set for August

Wednesday March 19, 2014

The AGA Go Camp is confirmed for this summer, reports Camp Director Amanda Miller. Camp will be held the week before the Go Congress, from August 3rd to 9th, at YMCA Camp Kresge in White Haven, PA. White Haven is about 2 hours outside of New York City, so anyone who wishes to attend both camp and congress should be able to do so easily. Miller will be joined by co-director Nano Rivera, and they invite campers of all skill levels, and between the ages of 8 and 18, to join them for a week of go-playing and fun. More information regarding the camp will be available soon, and registration will open within the next two weeks. Keep an eye on the camp website for details. Those who played in the NAKC or the Redmond Cup are eligible for a $400 scholarship, and need-based scholarships will also be available. Any questions can be e-mailed to Amanda Miller at agagocampeast@gmail.com. -Story and photo by Amanda Miller

Categories: U.S./North America,Youth

Go Spotting: Teen Wolf – Third Week in a Row

Wednesday March 19, 2014

MTV’s Teen Wolf seems to be on a go jag. This week’s episode featured another conversation about strategy, with Kira (Arden Cho) learning about go from her mother, who even explains what the game is about, and describes territory. Later in the episode, Kira’s father tells her that go is called Baduk in Korea, and that her mother is a very aggressive player – too aggressive for her own good. This marks the third week in a row that go has been featured on the show, and next week’s episode is titled “The Divine Move,” which any Hikaru no Go fan will immediately recognize as a key concept in the manga. My guess is that next weeks episode will revolve around another go match, possibly between Kira and her mother. Check out Teen Wolf on the MTV website here. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor.

Categories: Go Spotting,U.S./North America,Youth

American Go E-Journal » Youth