Zhao Nanzhe
November 5, 2018, is the first "Go Day" designated by the South Korean government. On this day, the Korean Chess Academy published the "Seven National Players Who Shine Korean Go". Cho Nam-chul, Kim Yin, Cho Hyun-hyun, Cho Ji-hoon, Seo Bong-so, Lee Chang-ho, and Lee Sedol were selected as the "national players" (non-national hand-to-hand champions) who led Korean modern Go to the top of the world. Go Magazine, the monthly magazine of the Korean Chess Academy, serialized a special feature for the seven people.
Zhao Nanzhe calligraphy
Why do we live so poorly?
"I suddenly had the question: 'Why are we living so poor?' I came up with the answer: 'It's because our country lacks experts in all areas.' I thought, 'Then should I serve the country with Go?' Because I'm a Go expert. From that moment on, I decided to dedicate my life to Go. ”
——Cho Nam-cheol was interviewed by KBS TELEVISION in South Korea before his death
Back in time to the restoration of 1945. Liberation has finally arrived, and the streets are filled with joy. But Zhao Nanzhe's chest was stuffy, but at the age of 22, all he knew was go learned from Japan, and he felt that he was doing nothing to help the reconstruction of the motherland.
Zhao Nanzhe tossed and turned for several days, full of thoughts, but eventually boiled down to the question, "Why are we not living as well as Japan?" "If the country wants to become rich and strong, more experts must emerge in various fields. Some people have served the country through school, some people have passed sports, some people have served the country as soldiers, and I have become a professional chess player who specializes in Go, so I will use Go to repay the motherland.
Zhao Nanzhe held high the banner of "chess and serving the country" all his life.
What is an expert? It is a person who has expertise and skills in technology or art, and in other specific fields. In reality, experts are people who can make a living on their own knowledge and abilities. As the saying goes, experts are actually people who "can support themselves."
At least you can "feed yourself" in order to be recognized as an expert and then get the treatment of "people". Therefore, the number one topic and core goal of Zhao Nanzhe's "chess road to serve the country" is to create more "Go experts (professional chess players)".
Commemorative photo of the founding of the Korean National Hand War
"Shhh, here comes the gambling captain"
But this dream is too far away. When South Korea first recovered, there was no Go population at all. Zhao Nanzhe said: "At that time, there were about two thousand people in the south who could play chess?" The late Mr. Xin Haolie (sinologist, professional second paragraph) sighed and said: "Down to Yihe County, you can't even find a complete chessboard." ”
The goal of "serving the country with chess" is magnificent, but the reality is too bleak or even bleak. Because the chess pieces and chessboard were not ready, Zhao Nanzhe went to find the Japanese who were preparing to withdraw to China. With seven pairs of chess pieces and chess boards in this way, Cho Nam-cheol couldn't wait to hang a plaque at the foot of Namsan Mountain in Seoul.
The day the "Seoul Chess Academy" plaque was hung was November 5, 1945, and 73 years later, this day became the official "Go Day" in South Korea. The plaque was finally hung, but it was only the beginning of the misery of sixteen consecutive moves. Moreover, when Cho Nam-chul felt that he had "finally settled down", the Korean War broke out.
"Rummaging through the black ashes for chess pieces, Zhao Nanzhe's mood is like a father crying bitterly holding the body of his burned son."
This is a sentence in "Zhao Nanzhe's Self-Statement" (Translation: Lan Mou had been translated and serialized in the complete book of the discontinued "Chess Art" magazine, but unfortunately, the hard disk was scrapped and failed to save the manuscript). Zhao Nanzhe's trolley carried a chessboard with hard work to build a "Korean chess academy" destroyed in the war, and Zhao Nanzhe looked at the ruins and wept.
However, Zhao Nanzhe soon regained his footing. After being demobilized as a disabled soldier, he begged around newspapers to start professional chess battles, which became the basis of Today's Korean Go.
Water marker bridge (1441)
Zhao Nanzhe often told such a story before his death: "Whenever I passed the Water Biao Bridge, the aunts booed and said ' The gambling captain is coming'. I still can't forget those words. ”
Although it was fifty years ago, Zhao Nanzhe still remembered it clearly. That is to say, this sentence is a block in Zhao Nanzhe's heart that cannot be dissolved in his life. After the end of the Korean War, Cho Still needs to fight these prejudices.
Now it is understandable what "If Go can be paid, it is the highest" means. Those who play with money and gamble cannot receive wages, and those who can receive wages are all legitimate people in society. If you want to get a salary, you must at least have a foundation of chess fans and sponsors. In turn, if you can get a salary, it means the maturity of the organization.
So for the newborn Go TV, Zhao Nanzhe asked " Can I get paid?" ”。
Original: An Shengwen Lan Lie compiled
(To be continued)