Korean media: 2024 Go New Year! Birth of six new world championships and 5 crowns Shin Jinzhen can catch up with the 8 champions is not
On January 2, Beijing time, according to the South Korean professional Go portal "Egret Net", the Year of the Dragon 2024 is expected to be the year with the most competitions in the history of international Go competitions, and at least 10 international competitions, including six recognized world competitions, have been confirmed or are underway. The most brilliant time for a Chinese chess player was in the 2013 season, when he won all six world championships that year. Shin Jinzhen LG Cup has reached the finals, and is the defending champion of the Ying Cup and Samsung Cup, and there is a theoretical possibility of winning 3 championships in 1 year this year.
2024 is the Olympic year, and the Ying's Cup, nicknamed the "Go Olympics", has changed the schedule of the previous edition due to objective reasons, and this year will be a one-shot shot to determine the new champion within the year. Chang Hao, the champion of the 5th Yingshi Cup, became the new chairman of the Chinese Go Association last summer, and the first thing in this year's schedule is to arrange the Yingshi Cup. This year is the 10th Yingshi Cup, and the qualifiers will be held in April, followed by the round of 16 in Shanghai in June, and the first two games of the finals will be played in Shanghai, and the 3-5 rounds of the final are tentatively scheduled for October 24-28.
The last Ying's Cup was affected by many factors, and the final was also changed from the traditional five-way chess to a three-way chess victory, and Shen Zhenzhen defeated China's post-00 Xie Ke 2-0 to win the championship. This year's Ying's Cup resumes a five-way chess victory, Shen Zhenzhen will fight to defend the title, but will definitely be fiercely challenged by Chinese chess players, Ke Jie can become a member of the team to challenge Shen Zhenzhen, it is still unknown. As the top chess player in the history of Go, Ke Jie has not yet been able to make achievements in the Ying Cup.
The New Olympic Cup, with a prize fund of up to 2.2 million yuan, will officially restart this year. The ENN Cup is the second most prized world tournament after the Ying Cup (US$400,000). At the end of 2017, Ke Jie defeated Peng Liyao in the final of the first New Olympic Cup to win his fifth crown.
South Korea's annual individual world championship is fixed with the LG Cup and the Samsung Cup at the end of the year. The LG Cup was held on New Year's Eve, and the final of the 28th LG Cup in February this year will be played between two Korean chess players, Shin Jinzhen and Bian Sang-yi, after Ke Jie lost to Shin Jinzhen in the semi-finals. At present, Shen Zhenzhen can say that his sixth world championship is within reach. At the Samsung Cup at the end of last year, Ke Jie, who lost in the qualifiers, missed the main match for the first time in 9 years, and finally Shen Zhenzhen defeated Cui Jing 2-0 in the final to win his fifth championship. In this year's Samsung Cup, can Ke Jie, the four-time champion of the competition, make a comeback?
The biennial Chunlan Cup will also start its 15th event this year, and the last champion was South Korea's Bian Sang-yi. However, according to the known schedule, the 15th Chunlan Cup will only be the semi-finals by the end of December this year, and the final will be held next season.
On April 24 this year, the 2nd Quzhou Rotten Ke Cup in Ke Jie's hometown will begin, and Ke Jie himself has already been eliminated from the qualifiers. From June 27th to 29th, the top 8 and semi-finals will be held. From August 19th to 22nd, the trilogy finals will be held. Can Ke Jie break the spell?
From April 29th to May 5th, the 5th Dream Lily Cup will hold a five-way chess final. On the evening of January 2, Beijing time, the semi-finals of this competition have just ended, Dang Yifei and Li Xuanhao defeated the two post-00 Liao Yuanhe and Liu Yuhang 2-0 respectively, and the final will be between Dang Yifei and Li Xuanhao.
On March 7, the 6th Fanxing Cup kicked off. The 7th Wu Qingyuan Cup World Women's Go Championship will be held in May. It is also possible to hold the Koulongshan Cup. As a result, the number of Women's World Go Championships will increase to three. And it is reported that the Huanglongshi Cup World Women's Go Tournament is also expected to be held again. In addition, the 25th Nongshim Cup and the 1st Baishan Water Cup Veterans Tournament will be decided at the end of February. From August 2nd to 5th, the 10th National Champion Mountain Cup World Go Championship will be held.
All in all, the 2024 season is a very busy year for top Go professionals. To put it simply, if Ke Jie does not win the championship again this year and stays in the eight-crown position by the end of the year, it is more likely that she will be caught up by Shen Zhenzhen this year. Ke Jie couldn't compete for the championship this year, except for the LG Cup and the Dream Lily Cup, and the other four competitions theoretically have the possibility of winning the championship. Ke Jie Xinao Cup can enter the main competition with the status of the last champion, and the Ke Cup has already entered the main competition, and the Ying's Cup and Samsung Cup are likely to start from the qualifiers, and it is not yet known whether they can enter the main competition.