Founded on July 17, 1924, the Japan Chess Academy celebrates its centennial in 2024. On July 17th, the Go community gathered at the Okura Hotel in Tokyo, Japan, to wish the Japan Chess Academy a century of history and open a new chapter. The new chairman of the Japan Chess Academy, Takemiya Sunshine, the president, Kei Imai, the consultant, Yoshio Ishida, the well-known chess players Kobayashi Koichi and Iyama Yuta delivered speeches on stage, Chang Hao, chairman of the Chinese Go Association, Nie Weiping, honorary chairman, Liang Jaehao, director of the Korea Chess Academy, and Cao Xunxuan, world champion, were invited to participate in the grand event. At the commemorative ceremony, Takuji Yanagimoto, chairman of the Japan Go Culture Promotion Parliamentarians Union and former member of the House of Councillors, read a congratulatory message from Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
The scene of the ceremony.
Hero Otake, Hayashi Haifeng, Yoshio Ishida, Koichi Kobayashi, Yuta Iyama, and Ichiri Liao sat in the front row as the representatives of the chess players.
The new chairman of the board of directors, Sunshine Takemiya, said that in the face of the "pile-up" problems such as the financial deficit of the Japan Chess Academy, the reform of the competition, the popularization of Go, the expansion of the number of fans and sponsors, and the response to world competitions, the chess players and staff will unite to promote the development of Go culture and the management reform of the chess academy.
The centennial celebration was held at Hotel Okura, the family business of Kishichiro Okura, one of the founders of the Japan Chess Academy.
Hisao Taki, the sponsor of Double Go and founder of Gurunavi, presented a spectacular wall of bouquets for the centennial of the Japan Chess Academy.
Six female chess players, Yoko Kuwabara, Kaoru Chinen, Eimi Koyama, Cocoon Hosaka, Yumiko Okada, and Kana Manba (from left) provided services for the registration, which is a rare high-standard.
The congratulatory flower baskets of the Chinese Go Association, the Korea Chess Academy, and major newspapers, enterprises, and local governments in Japan lined up in a long line, which was quite grand.
A list of groups and individuals who donated funds to the centennial celebration (those with high amounts) was set up at the venue.
Representatives of the sponsors of Japan's seven major title battles sat on the stage and received thanks from the Go community.
The ceremony was presided over by Yukari Umezawa.
The son became the chairman, and the father, Masaki Takemiya, sat in the last row in a low-key manner, holding his mobile phone to film the celebration.
Akitoshi Muraoka, President of the Yomiuri Shimbun Tokyo Headquarters, and Nao Matsumoto, President of the Mie Prefecture Branch of the Japan Chess Academy, delivered speeches as representatives of the centennial honorees (sponsoring the Shimbun and Go branch organizations across Japan), and delivered speeches with Yuko Taki, President of the Japan Go Federation, Masashi Ikefang, Chairman of the Kansai Chess Academy, Chang Hao, Chairman of the Chinese Go Association, Liang Jaehao, Director of the Korea Chess Academy, and Lin Minhao, President of the Haifeng Chess Academy.
Zenji Hanyu, president of the Japan Shogi Federation, and both he and Iyama Yuta are recipients of Japan's "National Honor Award", and the Japan Shogi Federation will celebrate its 100th anniversary this year.
In his speech, Zenji Hanyu said, "Chess is dialogue," and that it is a unique culture created through history and tradition, and that people can feel the diversity and possibilities. No matter how advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology is, the communication between people will not change.
Yuta Iyama said: We must cherish what we have inherited, and at the same time, we must have a flexible attitude to respond to this changing era. I hope that the chess community will brainstorm together and develop in a better direction.
Saburo Kawabuchi, the godfather of Japan football and an immortal contributor to the rise of Japan basketball, is also a Go enthusiast, and the 87-year-old came to congratulate him, hoping that "more players in Japan will go to the world."
Koichi Kobayashi, Saburo Kawabuchi, Shiro Nakamura (President of the Asahi Shimbun), Kazuo Kakura (Chairman of Hankyu Electric Railway Corporation), Zenji Hanyu, and Yuta Iyama (from left) raise a glass on behalf of people from all walks of life who support the Go community.
At the end of the ceremony, Yoshio Ishida invited the current first person Ichiri Liao to take the stage to announce the closing, symbolizing the inheritance of Go in Japan.
As part of the ceremony, the opening ceremony of the Japan Women's League was also held, and the solemnity of the century and the vitality of youth complemented each other.
84-year-old Norio Kudo and 82-year-old Lin Haifeng, two elders who witnessed the golden age of Japan's Go, appeared at the venue at the same time, and the two were close friends who had known each other since childhood, leaving a very precious scene.
Chang Hao, Zhang Xuan and his wife took a group photo with Zhang Xu, Kobayashi Quanmei, Zhang Xincheng and Zhang Xinzhi.
Yili Liao's father, Yili Yayan, president of Hebei Xinbao, communicated with Chang Hao, chairman of the Chinese Go Association.
Wang Licheng, Satoshi Kataoka, and Hiroshi Yamashiro gathered together.
Yuta Iyama and Aisaki Ueno take a commemorative photo in front of the centennial flower wall.
The commemorative special issue of the Japan monthly magazine "Go World" chose Zhang Xu's "100 Years" dead and alive theme as the cover.