On April 11, at the 51st Tengen War Qualifiers in Japan, Sugiuchi Toshiko Hachidan, born on March 6, 1927, appeared against Michihiro Morita Kudan, a disciple of Fujisawa Hideyuki and born in 1970, at the age of 97 years and 1 month, updating the record for the world's oldest professional chess player set by her husband Masao Sugiuchi Kudan seven years ago. After the match, Sugiuchi said, "It's very emotional to be able to have this day, and I thank the fans for always supporting me. In the future, I will cherish every game in front of me. ”
Before the game, facing many reporters who came to report, Sugiuchi Shouko, who was nearly 100 years old, was full of vitality in her eyes.
The previous record for the oldest professional tournament in the Go world was completed on November 2, 2017, 1917, 19 days before his death by Masao Sugiuchi, who was born on October 20, 1920, and lost to female chess player Eemi Koyama 7 dan in the "Last Game of Life". Of course, since the retirement of Hidechi Kudani in 2009, Masao Sugiuchi has made history with every game of chess. Now, the baton of changing history has passed to Mrs. Sugiuchi Toshiko.
Before the start of a record-setting game, two players bow to each other.
After the death of Masao Sugiuchi, Sugiuchi Toshiko passed on the spirit of her husband's lifelong dedication to chess, and his wife still insisted on playing chess, just like her husband was still in the chess world. In the seven years since her husband left, Sugiuchi Toshiko defeated two juniors in a row in 2019 and entered the Japanese women's Honinbo Tournament, setting a record for the oldest player in the world at the age of 92. From 2020 to 2023, he persevered in the difficult environment of nearly 800 days without winning, and won 3 victories in 2023, including a victory over Hinano Yokota on April 13 (born in 2003, 76 years apart), which is the world's largest age difference in the age of victory.
The white-haired Sugiuchi Toshiko dropped the chess pieces, and her spiritual strength on the chessboard was as young as ever.
On March 6, 2024, Sugiuchi Shouko celebrated her 97th birthday, and on March 14, she lost to Masaaki Fukui Kudan in the 50th Qi Jihad Qualifiers. On April 11, when she faced Michihiro Morita, who was 43 years younger than her and was also a star of the moment, Sugiuchi Toshiko, who has become the best in the world, was in good spirits and faced Morita head-to-head on the chessboard. It's a pity that the years are ruthless, and a large number of pieces were killed due to miscalculations, and the middle game was defeated.
Although it is a pity that the quick defeat, Sugiuchi Shouko faced the black momentum on the upper right, and the courage of Bai 64 to attack and defend is still a manifestation of the fighting spirit beyond his age, which makes the professional chess player "Thanksgiving" tribute.
Sugiuchi's new record was reported by mainstream media such as NHK, Yomiuri Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun, and Yahoo News. As a unique sport, the value of Go in exercising brain power, delaying aging, and increasing the sense of well-being in life has once again been demonstrated by the miracle of Sugiuchi Toshiko.
On March 14, Sugiuchi Toshiko vs Masaaki Fukui played a game photo. Sitting next to Sugiuchi Toshiko is Saki Yanagihara, who was born in 2010, and Go is an intellectual sport that can be played together and has no age limits.
I wish Sugiuchi Toshiko's "100-year-old game".