Bai Baoxiang (China), 2024 (and 5th times) amateur world champion !
The 44th World Amateur Go Championship (WAGC) was held on 19–22 May in Tokyo, Japan.
After eight rounds of intense games, Bai Baoxiang from China emerged victorious, clinching his fifth championship.
Bai has previously won the WAGC in 2011, 2016, 2017, and 2022.
Korea’s Kim Jeong-Seon (last year champion) came in second, and Japan’s Ōzeki Minoru was third.
Each one had a score of seven wins and one loss, with Bai having lost to Ōzeki, Ōzeki to Kim, and Kim to Bai.
SOS was used as tiebreaker, with Bai having the highest score, followed by Kim, and then Ōzeki.
Bai has a total of 37 wins and 1 loss in all the WAGC tournaments he has participated in, his game with Ōzeki being his only loss.
Top 6 places:
1. Bai Baoxiang (China) 7/8
2. Kim Jeon-Seon (Korea) 7/8
3. Ōzeki Minoru (Japan) 7/8
4. Pongsakarn Sornarra (Thailand) (6-d, 17 years old !) 6/8
5. Lo Sheng-Chieh (Chinese Taipei) (6/8)
6. Csaba Mero (Hungary) (6/8) (best Westerner, best European)
Our delegate was Renaud Gaban (1-k).
He ended 31th (out of 60 participants) with a 4/8 score
(logical losses to stronger opponents of France, Singapore, Croatia and Brunei; wins against Venezuela (a 2-d !), rep Dominican Republic, Kazakhstan...and against another 2-d competitor, from Norway (his land of residence for the being time).
Congratulations to him !
More info on: https://www.intergofed.org/igf-news-feed/bai-baoxiang-from-china-wins-44...