Kisei (Go)
| Kisei (Go) | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Kisei |
| Started | 1976 |
| Honorary Winners | Fujisawa Hideyuki Kobayashi Koichi Iyama Yuta |
| Sponsors | Yomiuri Shimbun |
| Prize money | ¥45 million[1] $557,000 (as of 29 June 2011) |
| Affiliation | Nihon Ki-in |
Kisei (棋聖) is an honorary title and go competition. The title, meaning Go Sage in Japanese, was a traditional honorary appellation given to a handful of players down the centuries. The element ki can also apply to shogi, and there were also recognized kisei in the shogi world.
Background
Kisei is a Go competition organised by the Japanese Nihon Ki-in. The competition began in 1976 by the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper and is currently the highest paying competition in Japanese professional Go, paying ¥45,000,000 (approx. $557,000 as of 29 June 2011) to the winner in 2011.[1] The word Kisei is Japanese for "Go Sage", which is why before the Kisei tournament began, the only players who were given the title "Kisei" were Dōsaku and Hon′inbō Shūsaku.[2]
The holder is challenged by whoever wins the round robin league. Players can get into the round robin league by going through many preliminary tournaments. Once there is a challenger to compete against the holder, the winner is decided through a best of seven match. The games are played over two days and each player is given eight hours of thinking time.[2] If a player qualifies for the Kisei league, they are automatically promoted to 7 dan. If that same player wins the league, a promotion to 8 dan is given. If that same player goes on to winning the title, they are promoted to 9 dan, the highest rank.[3]
Past winners
| Year | Winner | Score | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Fujisawa Hideyuki | 4–1 | Hashimoto Utaro |
| 1978 | 4–3 | Kato Masao | |
| 1979 | 4–1 | Ishida Yoshio | |
| 1980 | 4–1 | Rin Kaiho | |
| 1981 | 4–0 | Otake Hideo | |
| 1982 | 4–3 | Rin Kaiho | |
| 1983 | Cho Chikun | 4–3 | Fujisawa Hideyuki |
| 1984 | 4–2 | Rin Kaiho | |
| 1985 | 4–3 | Takemiya Masaki | |
| 1986 | Kobayashi Koichi | 4–2 | Cho Chikun |
| 1987 | 4–1 | Takemiya Masaki | |
| 1988 | 4–1 | Kato Masao | |
| 1989 | 4–1 | Takemiya Masaki | |
| 1990 | 4–1 | Otake Hideo | |
| 1991 | 4–3 | Kato Masao | |
| 1992 | 4–3 | Yamashiro Hiroshi | |
| 1993 | 4–3 | Kato Masao | |
| 1994 | Cho Chikun | 4–2 | Kobayashi Koichi |
| 1995 | Kobayashi Satoru | 4–2 | Cho Chikun |
| 1996 | Cho Chikun | 4–3 | Kobayashi Satoru |
| 1997 | 4–1 | ||
| 1998 | 4–2 | Yoda Norimoto | |
| 1999 | 4–2 | Kobayashi Koichi | |
| 2000 | O Rissei | 4–2 | Cho Chikun |
| 2001 | 4–2 | Cho Sonjin | |
| 2002 | 4–2 | Ryu Shikun | |
| 2003 | Yamashita Keigo | 4–1 | O Rissei |
| 2004 | Hane Naoki | 4–3 | Yamashita Keigo |
| 2005 | 4–3 | Yuki Satoshi | |
| 2006 | Yamashita Keigo | 4–0 | Hane Naoki |
| 2007 | 4–0 | Kobayashi Satoru | |
| 2008 | 4–3 | Cho Chikun | |
| 2009 | 4–2 | Yoda Norimoto | |
| 2010 | Cho U | 4–1 | Yamashita Keigo |
| 2011 | 4–2 | Iyama Yuta | |
| 2012 | 4–3 | Takao Shinji | |
| 2013 | Iyama Yuta | 4–2 | Cho U |
| 2014 | 4–2 | Yamashita Keigo | |
| 2015 | 4–3 | ||
| 2016 | 4–0 | ||
| 2017 | 4-2 | Kono Rin | |
| 2018 | 4-0 | Ichiriki Ryo | |
| 2019 | 4-3 | Yamashita Keigo |
Honorary winners
A Go player who has held the title for five consecutive years, or won the title a total of ten times or more, has qualified himself to become "Honorary Kisei" after retiring or after the age of 60.
- Fujisawa Hideyuki 1977–1982
- Kobayashi Koichi 1986–1993
- Iyama Yuta 2013-
References
- ^ a b "Title Holders". Nihon Ki-in. Archived from the original on 14 May 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
- ^ a b "Go Tournament: Kisei". gogameworld.com. Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ^ "Abolition of the rating tournament". nihonkiin.or.jp/english. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
External links
- Official Kisei page of Yomiuri Shinbun (in Japanese)
- Kisei title games