On March 30, Beijing time, the first "Sichuan Neng Tou Cup" China Go World Championship Invitational Tournament in 2024 opened in Chengdu, Sichuan. This is a world championship invitational tournament. The results of the first round are as follows: Shi Yue lost to Gu Li, Dang Yifei defeated Tang Weixing, Xie Hao defeated Luo Xihe, and Tan Xiao defeated Gu Zihao. The two surprises in the first round were of course Shi Yue's loss to Gu Li and Gu Zihao's loss to Tan Xiao.
Shi Yue is so old that even Gu Li can't win chess
I wonder if Chairman Chang Hao on the rostrum will also have the idea of technical skills after seeing Gu Li win. The organizers originally used the reputation of these world champions to create a new event, and they can consider inviting Chang Hao to participate in the next one. The standards of this competition are very high. Even Nie Weiping is here. It is the most grand scene of Sichuan Go. But because it is an invitational tournament, it does not count as level points.
Korea and we both do a better job of the current professional chess players’ ratings, which can basically reflect a chess player’s dynamic strength and status. Shiyue's latest grade ranking is 17th in the country, and Guli's latest ranking is 46th. If this event were to be graded, Coulee would definitely gain a lot of points.
Shi Yue was born in January 1991 and is now only 33 years old. Shi Yue won the LG championship in 2013. It has been 11 years since then. Shi Yue is my country’s 10th Go world champion. As early as November 2012, Shi Yue, who was only 21 years old at the time, briefly surpassed Park Ting-hwan to become the world's number one.
Eight-time champion Guli is now 41 years old. He won his eighth personal crown in June 2015, when he defeated Zhou Ruiyang 2-0 in the Chunlan Cup final. Today, Shi Yue and Gu Li played a chess game with many twists and turns. Gu Li, who was holding the black position, was quite passive for a time. During the fierce battle, Gu Li judged the situation and gave up the upper left corner to grab the final. Finally, he won with 3/4 stones. The winner of this competition received a bonus of 150,000 yuan, the runner-up received 50,000 yuan, the top four received 30,000 yuan, and the top eight received 20,000 yuan. Shi Yue walked away with 20,000 yuan in tears, believing that he felt quite painful in his heart, as he actually lost to an old comrade.
Chang Hao and Gu Li were the twin stars of Chinese Go back then. Chang Hao was born in 1976 and is now 47 years old. This age is basically still in the prime of life in Japan and South Korea, and it is still the absolute main force for the title of war champion, but in China they can only be veteran cadres. Chang Hao is now the chairman of the Chinese Go Association, and Guli is the vice chairman of the Chinese Go Association and the president of the Chongqing Go Association. Chang Hao basically doesn't come out to play games now, and his domestic ranking belongs to the inactive chess player category.
The fastest falling world champion is him
Tang Xuanzong's comprehensive strength has declined obviously in the past few years. In this competition, Tang Xuanzong lost to Dang Yifei in the first round and left with 20,000 yuan in the first round. In today's lottery ceremony before the game, the eight invited players each drew one word from the eight words "green and low-carbon technology empowerment", and Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty Tang Weixing happened to draw the word "color".
Xuanzong's expression during the lottery ceremony was rather awkward, even a little confused. Later, Tang Xuanzong lost to Dang Yifei in the first round. Dang Yifei ranks 7th in the domestic rankings, and 31-year-old Triple Crown winner Tang Weixing has dropped to 38th in the domestic rankings. In July last year, Tang Weixing married his girlfriend Lu Yuqing.
The food at the tournament is really good
Tang Weixing is a cheerful chess player who likes to interact with netizens. He also updates his Weibo frequently. Although Tang Weixing is still playing in the siege, it is difficult to reach the main draw of many world competitions, and he is basically transitioning to the role of "retired chess player".
In today’s semi-finals, Guli lost to Xie Hao and Tan Xiao lost to Dang Yifei. At 10 a.m. on March 31, Dang Yifei will compete with Xie Hao for the championship.
