村上健のオセロ日記

Meijin Final [ ブログ ]

先日シンガポール在住の末国九段から次のようなメールをいただきました。

「村上さんのブログ（特に今回の名人戦の分）に関して海外の選手から「ぜひ読みたい。翻訳ソフトを使っても全く理解できない」との話を聞きましたのでメールしました。お忙しいところお願いするのも大変恐縮ですが、もし可能であれば英語版を掲載していただければ海外の選手も喜ぶと思います」

以前別の選手から似たようなことを言われたこともあるので、英語版を載せてみます。かなりやっつけ仕事なので、色々と翻訳ミスもあるかと思いますがご容赦下さい。

Meijin final

I had the honor of being the table judge for the final game of Meijin Tournament. The finalists, Yusuke Takanashi and Hiroshi Goto, had won five straight games to reach the final. As I sat beside him, ready to take transcripts, Goto took a long moment readying himself for the crucial match.

Goto finished 4th at the 27th World Championships held in Stockholm in 2003. After the tournament, he wrote the following for Othello News:

"In order for a Japanese player to become World Champion, he has first to qualify in an extremely competitive preliminary tournament. He then has to beat a host of foreign players at the WOC, who have been steadily improving in the past years, and he has also to beat a few compatriots along the way. At present I am not good enough to go over all these obstacles at the same time. But I haven’t lost hope. I will continue to improve my play, and someday I will reach the pinnacle of the world."

The defeat at the semi-final did not discourage Goto. He accepted the loss against Makoto Suekuni, saw what he lacked then to be a champion, and set his mind to putting still more effort to have his dream come true. Reading the above article, I became a fan of Goto. And here he was, only one step away from qualifying for his third WOC. Silently I sent him my cheers.

Takanashi is only in his 10th grade, and has become one of the best Japanese players in less than three years. A true young prodigy preceded only by, in my opinion, Makoto Suekuni. He had lost the final of All Japan Chapmpionship to Takamune Iijima last year, but everyone expected his debut at the WOC imminent. True enough, Takanashi had again reached the final of one of three qualifying tournaments, which in itself is an amazing feast for any player. He appeared a little nervous, but never as much as one would expect a player of his age to be.

After exchanging a customary bow and “Onegaishimasu”, which literally means “I beg your teaching,” they started the game. Moves 1-18 were made with frightening speed. I thought that a less experienced table judge might have had trouble taking the transcript and had to ask the players to stop and replay the opening. They moved that fast.

It was as though watching two samurais fight. A master samurai Goto and the young contender Takanashi exchanged flurry of sword strikes with lightening speed. Looking at 18, Goto thought for a little while and, as if bringing his sword down with all his might, dashed his disc down on the board. It made a loud bang. Takanashi spent some time to make the next move. After that, they both used little time, saving as much time as possible for the coming endgame.

Goto chose 29b6 instead of the apparently better e2. After the game he said he regretted the move. He said he hadn't gone to e2 because the semi-forced e2-f1-d1 would have flipped the two diagonal discs (b3 and c2), but that he should have chosen that line nevertheless.

Takanashi spent more than five minutes for 30e2. Goto spent a long time deciding on the next move. My first instinct was that the position after 30 was better for black. With Goto thinking beside me, I pondered the next move. F1 would have been a natural choice, but then white would go to e8, after which d7-h3! would be killing. What would black have after e8? Not much. I considered playing to the east edge instead of f1, but couldn’t come up with any promising lines. It seemed that the apparently leading position for black was in fact losing for him.

Probably Goto came to the same conclusion. As the clock ticked away, distress showed on his face. A couple of times he reached out on the board, only to pull them back. Those hesitant gestures vividly conveyed to me the deep distress he must have been in. At last he went to h6.

H6 wasn’t a bad move, but it wasn’t good enough to improve the situation. Black’s position deteriorated rapidly. Takanashi’s play was brilliant: 38, 44, 48, and 50 were all best moves, and were played confidently and without using much time. Goto occasionally let out quiet cries of agony. Seeing move 50 he said “Ah!” quite loudly, as if saying he was fed up with his own helplessness. It was hard for me to watch him in such plight, but I watched until the end. Many players would have been tempted to resign in such a helpless position, but Goto played through to the end, as if reprimanding his own ineptness.

Thus a new legend was made. I want to congratulate the new 16-year-old Meijin Takanashi for his great performance, and I hope he will win the WOC this year. I feel truly sorry for Goto. But the way he played after he had realized his defeat has made me a still bigger fan of him. I hope he will keep up his hardwork and someday have his dream come true.

58 57 20 47 24 32 37 46
39 49 09 11 30 27 33 43
14 08 03 04 10 16 19 35　
23 13 05 00 00 06 15 36　● Hiroshi Goto 16
44 21 07 00 00 01 26 34　○ Yusuke Takanashi 48
45 29 12 02 17 22 28 31
60 55 54 50 25 18 38 48
56 59 53 40 41 42 52 51