Taiwan college student Chen Yen-ru (???) finished third at the 18th edition of the World Students GO OZA Championship in Tokyo Wednesday, according to HaiFong Go Association.
The 23-year-old amateur 7-dan Go player from National Taiwan Sport University tied for third with China's Gao Yifan (???) after a 3-1 record. The two-day tournament was won by South Korean Kim Seungwon, with Japanese player Kawaguchi Tsubasa second.
"This may have been my last chance to participate in the Students OZA, but it was my very first international tournament. It was a great chance and experience to compete against Go players from around the world, and it meant a lot to me," Chen told CNA.
Asked to comment on his performance, Chen said the tournament was "a great way to end (his) college years," but he regretted how he played in his second game, which he lost to Thailand's Wichrich Karuehawanit after overplaying his hand.
Chen clinched his tournament berth last October by winning a third straight championship at the National University Go Elite Ten, with the best-performing male and female Go players representing Taiwan in the annual tournament in Japan.
Chen dominated the Go Elite Ten in 2019, 2020 and 2022 (it was canceled in 2021), but missed out on his first two chances to play in Japan because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the tournament being canceled for the past three years. In order to take part this year Chen even postponed his graduation for one year to remain eligible.
In addition to Chen Yen-ru, Chen Xin (??) from Fo Guang University also represented Taiwan and finished 12th with a 1-3 record. She finished sixth at the Go Elite Ten to top all the other female rivals and secure her slot.
Though she finished well below Chen Yen-ru in the final standings, Chen Xin, who has focused more on teaching Go rather than playing it competitively since 2019, said she was very satisfied with what she accomplished, having tried her best in every match.
"My own goal coming into the tournament was to not lose all of my games," she said.
Of the four games she played, she felt her best showing was her third game against China's Gao, who tied for third.
"I had several chances to win late in the game. It's a shame I couldn't close it out because of the limited time I had left," said Chen Xin, who referred to the tournament as her "last dance."
The tournament in Japan is the most important tournament for amateur college Go players, HaiFong Go Association President Lin Min-hao (???) said, and is also significant because it sets a goal for amateur Go players to prolong their interest in game.
While many Taiwanese play Go in their childhood, they tend to stop after attending junior high school. "Those who continue playing Go as college students are more likely to pay serious attention to Go," Lin said in a phone interview.
This year the World Students GO OZA Championship involved nine men and seven women from around the world, including one man and woman from Taiwan, China, South Korea and Japan.
Other participants included individuals from Thailand and Singapore, the United States and Mexico, Germany, Romania, France and Australia, according to the tournament website.
First held in 2003, the tournament is organized annually by the All-Japan Student Go Association, Nikkei and Pandanet, with 16 Go players vying for the honor. China has won the event eight times and South Korea seven.
Taiwan's best record at the tournament is second place, achieved by male players in 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2016, while the best record by a female was National Tsing Hua University's Lin Hsiao-tung (???), who finished fourth and received the award for the best-performing female in 2017 and 2019.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel