Go Seigen
Go Seigen ( Chinese 吳清源 / 吴清源 , Pinyin Wú Qīngyuán , born June 12, 1914 in Minhou , Fujian Province , Republic of China ; † November 30, 2014 in Odawara , Japan ) was a Japanese Go professional of Chinese origin and is considered one of the best Go player of all time.
Go's extraordinary talent was discovered in 1926 by Iwamoto Kaoru, a Go teacher from Japan. In 1928 he went to Japan to take lessons from Segoe Kensaku . In 1929 he received his 3rd Dan from Nihon Ki-in , and in 1950 he was finally 9th Dan. In his career he won numerous championships, including the Ōteai title six times . In 1983 he officially ended his professional career. Go is considered to be the inventor of the Shinfuseki opening tactic . His life was filmed by the Chinese director Tian Zhuangzhuang under the title The Go Master ; Go is portrayed by Chang Chen . In 1986 he received an honorary doctorate in literature from Hong Kong University . He lived in Tokyo .
Life
Go Seigen was born in 1914 in Fujian Province in south-east China and did not learn the game of Go until he was nine years old, which was relatively late for a future professional Go player. His father, who was taught Go by Honinbo Shuho during his stay in Japan , introduced him to the game. His talent soon showed itself and by the age of 12 he achieved professional strength. So he plays on a par with the Japanese professional Iwamoto Kaoru (6p), who visited China in 1926.
In the following years he was able to defeat several Japanese professionals, such as Inoue Kohei and Hashimoto Utaro , which meant that his reputation quickly spread in Japan . So he came in 1928 with Japanese support from Baron Ōkura Kishichirō and Inukai Tsuyoshi in the country to pursue a career as a Go player. His master became Segoe Kensaku . So he quickly rose to the highest circles in the game and became part of a very small Japanese elite at the age of 18. In 1933 he popularized a new type of game opening through his games, the Shinfuseki, which deviated from the tradition of the time and Go Seigen thus became one of the founders of the modern Go game alongside Kitani Minoru .
End of career and death
In 1961 Go Seigen was involved in a serious motorcycle accident and spent several months in hospital. He was permanently damaged by the injuries and his concentration and playing strength decreased noticeably. He also suffered from nausea or attacks of dizziness during prolonged games. He then reduced his gaming activity and effectively ended his career in 1964 (officially 1983). After his retirement, Go Seigen continued to devote himself to the game of Go, for example through teaching, writing books or on promotional tours that were intended to further popularize the game abroad. In 1987 he was the Order of the Rising Sun awarded. On November 30, 2014, Go Seigen died of old age in Odawara at the age of 100 .
Act
Go Seigen is one of the best Go players of all time and is often considered the best player of the 20th century. He dominated the Go scene for more than a quarter of a century and won in Jūbango 's (a form of tournament in which a total of ten games are played between two players) against other world-class players such as Kitani Minoru , Karigane Junichi , Hashimoto Utaro , Iwamoto Kaoru , Fujisawa Hosai , Sakata Eio and Takagawa Kaku . It must be noted that all these games were played without Komi at the time, so White did not receive any points compensation for the disadvantage of the second move. Go Seigen was able to win the Oteai tournament six times, as well as a special Nihon Ki-in championship tournament in 1933.
literature
- Go Seigen: A Way of Play for the 21st Century . Whole Board Press, Los Altos 1999, ISBN 0967609615 .
Web links
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Go Seigen |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Wú Qīngyuán; 呉 清源 |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Sino-Japanese Go player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 12, 1914 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Fujian Province |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 30, 2014 |
| Place of death | Odawara , Japan |