The latest feat achieved by a young child will likely attract attention for whether it will help reestablish Japan as a strong nation in the game of Go.
Sumire Nakamura, an elementary school student from the city of Osaka, has turned pro, the youngest person in this country to do so. She made it at the tender age of exactly 10. She was the first child to be given a slot in special training for gifted children established by the Nihon Ki-in to recruit elementary school students as professional players.
Nakamura learned how to play Go at the age of 3, and she has developed her skills through training in South Korea and other means. Her talent is said to be so exceptional that Yuta Iyama, the strongest Go champion in Japan, was surprised by her degree of perfection, which he said, "Surpassed the level I had when I was 9."
Besides Nakamura, the Nihon Ki-in has produced seven pro players in their teens. In the past, the association gave professional status to one or so players each year.
The association's positive action of granting such status can be described as aiming to train professional players who can compete internationally.
Until the mid-1990s, Japan was said to be the world's strongest in the game of Go. However, Japanese Go players have since fallen far short of winning international Go tournaments and, as far as ability is concerned, they lag behind Chinese and South Korean competitors.
This is because China and South Korea have made efforts to improve their systems for training Go players at the national level. They have produced strong players through such endeavors as picking out talented children in various areas and exhaustively drilling them at private-sector training halls.
Support female players
Professional female players in Japan, however, are not so distant from their Chinese and South Korean rivals in capability as male Japanese players are. If progress is made in efforts to place priority on strengthening the abilities of Japanese females, it can be expected to serve as a trigger for success in closing the gap between them and players from other countries.
Enabling Nakamura and other players to improve their abilities requires an environment in which they can continue playing high-level games with other strong players. Early on, they need to be given assistance such as an increase in the number of opportunities to compete in international matches.
No less important than special training is reviving the popularity of Go.
Although there were said to be 10 million Go players, according to the Nihon Ki-in, the figure has dropped to about 3.5 million today. More than a few Go parlors have been closed.
What should be done to ensure people who have shown interest in Go through Nakamura's popularity begin to love the board game? Ingenuity should be exerted in making the attraction of Go known in an easy-to-understand manner through the use of the internet and other means, thereby making it possible for beginners to enjoy the game.
Go and shogi are helpful for improving one's ability to concentrate and developing a broad perspective. In Japan, both games are also valued as providing opportunities to learn civility and rules of etiquette.
Especially, Go has a long history, as shown by the fact that the game was already loved in Japan during the seventh century. Nobles in the Heian period enjoyed playing Go, and it was part of a culture in which the Edo shogunate government protected professional players.
With the appearance of young seventh-dan Sota Fujii, the shogi world came up with measures to promote the spread of the game. Go circles also are expanding opportunities to teach the game during classes in cooperation with universities. It is important to implement active measures in this respect, with a view to widening the field of Go enthusiasts.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, April 21, 2019)
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