Othello News January 2016
Yasushi Nagano wins 109th Shinagawa Seaside OpenLocation: Sninagawa, Japan
Date: January 30th Link: Nagano's blog, JOA website Tourney format: 6 rounds report by Takeshi Murakami: 1. Yasushi Nagano 6-0 2. Makoto Suekuni 5-1 3. Kento Urano 5-1 Nagano is a graduate of Azabu High School and he now studies physics at Tokyo University. Urano is an 11th grader of the same school. Both belonged[s] to the Azabu Othello Club, which is in Azabu High School where I work as an English and French teacher. I am the supervisor of the club. You can find all the six games Nagano played on his excellent blog. Note: Yukiko Tatsumi lost on time, Nagano had white in all six games. |
Yasushi Nagano
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Note by Othello News editor:
Takeshi Murakami always is a great help when I ask him about Japanese Othello players and tournaments and I gather a lot of info from his Othello blog. I check his blog regularly and a few weeks ago I learned that he was in hospital and was recovering from a very serious operation. He immediately replied to my email:
Takeshi Murakami always is a great help when I ask him about Japanese Othello players and tournaments and I gather a lot of info from his Othello blog. I check his blog regularly and a few weeks ago I learned that he was in hospital and was recovering from a very serious operation. He immediately replied to my email:
I have gone through an operation that took out a large part of brain tumor which had grown to the size of 5.5 cm in diameter. It was pushing the brainstem, giving high pressure to the cerebral cavity, and causing a few problems to my senses (for example, my left hearing had gradually been lost over the years, but the ENT doctors I consulted more than a decade ago could not determine the cause of it). What finally had me be aware of the tumor was an unbearable pain in the left of my mouth, which urged me to consult a dentist, then an oral surgeon. He sent me to a neurologist, who took my MRI scan that revealed a large tumor in my lower head. It seems the tumor had been there for more than two decades. Fortunately it was benign.
The operation was successful and I am doing quite well, except that I have dysphagia (swallowing disorder) and speech disorder as after effects. I can’t swallow anything (not even my own saliva!) and I can’t speak well. I will have to undergo a long course of physiotherapy.
I hope I will see you and talk to you in Mito this autumn!
Takeshi, all the best wishes to you from the many Othello friends you made all over the world. See you in Mito!!!!!
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TATSUMI Yukiko - NAGANO Yasushi 109th Shinagawa Open, round 2 |
NAKAJIMA Tetsuya 23 - 41 NAGANO Yasushi 109th Shinagawa Open, round 4 |
SUEKUNI Makoto 28-36 NAGANO Yasushi 109th Shinagawa Open, round 5 |
Marc Tastet wins Ile de France 1
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Location: Paris, France
Date: January 30th Link: FFO website Tourney format: 5 rounds Marc Tastet won the Ile de France 1 tournament with 4.5 points. Bintsa Andriani, who finished 3rd place, was the only player who managed to steal half a point from the winner. Runner-up was Frédéric Collay who hadn't played any tournament since 2002! Strangely, the last two players didn't get to play bye (whereas the four players just ahead of them did play bye). But this was logical as it happened. 
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Final result after 5 rounds:
1: 4.5 pts [205] TASTET Marc (2) {FRA} 2: 4. pts [175] COLLAY Frédéric (478) {FRA} 3: 3.5 pts [181] ANDRIANI Bintsa (45) {FRA} 4: 3. pts [203] TOUCHENE Fouad (9025) {DZA} [194] LEVY-ABEGNOLI Thierry (3598) {FRA} [162] BENOIT Serge (3600) {FRA} 7: 2. pts [159] BETIN Dominique (419) {FRA} [154] BUSUTTIL Michel (228) {FRA} [114] BOSSOU ALLO Françoise (50085) {FRA} 10: 1.5 pts [142] CORBINEAU Georges (50071) {FRA} [111] OVION Jacques (275) {FRA} |
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ANDRIANI Bintsa 32-32 TASTET Marc Ile de France 1 |
Andriani - Tastet
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Oskar Eklund wins Uppsala Othello OpenLocation: Uppsala, Sweden
Date: January 30th Link: SOF website Tourney format: 7 rounds Oskar Eklund won the 7-round tournament easily with 7 wins. Runner-up was Jeroen Everts with 5 points and third place for Henry Aspenryd with 4.5 points. 
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EVERTS Jeroen 17-47 ASPENRYD Henry Uppsala Open, round 1 |
ASPENRYD Henry 32-32 FRÖNMARK Marcus Uppsala Open, round 3 |
EKLUND Oskar 44-20 ASPENRYD Henry Uppsala Open, round 4 |
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Did you Know? European Grand Prix Rome facts by Tom Schotte
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Francesco Marconi wins first stage of 2016 European Grand Prix Othello
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Final:
Francesco Marconi 38-26 Arthur Juigner Arthur Juigner 30-34 Francesco Marconi Playoff 3rd / 4th place Marc Tastet 40-24 Arnaud Delaunay Read more on our EGP Rome page 
European Grand Prix ranking 2016
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Valentino Giannini wins Junior EGP Rome tournament
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Location: Rome, Italy
Date: January 24th Link: FNGO website, FB album Tourney format: 6 rounds, final and playoff In conjunction with the EGP Rome Tournament there was a fun tournament for juniors under 14. Valentino Giannini won all his games, what a great achievement!. Runner-up was Alessandro Ortiz. Giorgia Sperandio, taught by her father Roberto, and Giulio Pieragostini, played a great match in the playoff for 3/4 place which was won by Giulio on tiebreak. All four won a nice trophy and there was even a special premium trophy for Félix Juigner, the youngest among the participants of the main EGP tournament. Final: Giannini, Valentino - Ortiz, Alessandro = 2-0 (47-17, 33-31) Finale 3/4: Sperandio, Giorgia - Pieragostini, Giulio = 1-1 (15-50, 33-31) |
wnner: Valentino Giannini
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Reversi, it's war!Recently some of my Asian Othello friends recommended the Reversi Wars app. It's always great fun to play with people you know, so reason enough to download and try the app. Then I found out that the app was not available in the European Apple store. I sent a note to the developer of the app, Yasushi Tanase, and he immediately responded. Reversi Wars was rejected by Apple in Europe because of a EU trademark (Android version is available). Yasushi promissed me he would upload the Reversi Wars app with some other name in Europe. Today I got a message that the app is ready for download in the EU. Thank you Yasushi Tanasi for your quick response.
With Reversi Wars, you can play live games of reversi online against people around the world. Even if you are a beginner, you don't need to worry. There are very weak bots on the server anyone can beat with ease, so you can start from there and as your ratings improve, you can go on to stronger bots or other human players.You can also play a non-rated game with your friends. If you want to play against me, my nick is... OthelloNews Link: Reversi Wars developer website |
Yamaji Kimura wins 51st Sapporo OpenLocation: Sapporo, Japan
Date: January 24th Link: JOA website Tourney format: 6 rounds Yamaji Kimura won the 51st Sapporo Open with 5 wins and 1 loss. Runner-up was Sohei Sasaki who finished with the same score of 5 wins. |
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To transcribe or not to transcribe
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The discussion about obliging players to take transcripts at major tourneys got a boost at the WOF meeting in Cambridge and it has continued on a lot of forums like Eurothfed. If you want a glimpse of the discussion, or want to throw in your own two cents, have a look at the WOF discussion on FaceBook.
I think the revolution in tournaments in 2016 will be the use of cellphones and tablets to take transcripts during a game. Henry Aspenryd posted on Eurothfed group that he had received requests on evolving his LiveOthello app into a full blown transcript app. "For those of you that have used it, you probably know that I stopped developing it as Manu Lazard made liveothello.com mobile friendly, so I saw no real point in keeping the app. However, in the light of recent discussions, and the fact that the last Swedish tournament was held in a basement with no internet connection, I thought I would update the app to work with the new websocket API for liveothello, and while I am at it look at the possibilities to make it into transcript entering app as well. |
Othello diary of Takeshi Murakami (World Othello Champion in 1996, 1998 and 2000)
this is how neat my transcripts can be...., it hardly ever happens. my main problem is the movenumber. when I am completely at a loss I restart at 60
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Meijin-Sen for Niigata district 2016 / Preliminary resultsLocation: Niigata, Japan
Date: January 23rd Link: Niigata district FB Niigata Meijin : Yoshinori Umezawa Niigata Junior high school Meijin : Hiroto Obara Niigata Elementary school Meijin : Kano Kobayashi Niigata Women Meijin : Shiho Umezawa |
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Arthur Juigner (2nd), Francesco Marconi (1st), Marc Tastet (3rd)
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Francesco Marconi wins first stage of 2016 European Grand Prix OthelloFinal:
Francesco Marconi 38-26 Arthur Juigner Arthur Juigner 30-34 Francesco Marconi Playoff 3rd / 4th place Marc Tastet 40-24 Arnaud Delaunay Read more on our EGP Rome page 
European Grand Prix ranking 2016
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Olli Makkonen is Finland Othello ChampionLocation: Julkaistu, Finland
Date: January 23rd Tourney format: 7 rounds and final Link: Suomi Othello, Finland National Champions The first National Othello Champion of 2016 is Olli Makkonen! He won the Finnish title with a 36-28 win in the final against the 2014 Champion Janne Peiponen.
Lari Pihlajapuro won the playoff for third place against Jussi Koppinen 47-17. Olli won his first national championship in 2003 and this is his 6th title. Because of the registration for the WOC in Mito, most national championships have been scheduled a bit earlier this year. Ollie leads the list of National 2016 Champions, who's next? |
results after 7 rounds
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MAKKONEN Olli 36-28 PEIPONEN Janne Finland National Championship 2016, final |
Janne, Olli and Lari
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Kauana Aguiar Teixeira wins Othello Cup IILocation: Nova Odessa, Brazil
Date: January 23rd Tourney format: 4 rounds Link: FB album As many as 24 players at this tournament. Kauana finished 10th at the Othello Cup I last November. This time the win was for him. Vitor Correia, winner in November, scored only 2.5 points. |
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Miroslav Voráček wins Czech GP1
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
Date: January 23rd
Tourney format: 9 rounds Swiss
A good start of the 2016 Czech Grand Prix Othello for Miroslav Voráček. Best player under 18 was Filip Černý.
Date: January 23rd
Tourney format: 9 rounds Swiss
A good start of the 2016 Czech Grand Prix Othello for Miroslav Voráček. Best player under 18 was Filip Černý.
European Grand Prix 2016, stage 1 RomeThe 2016 European Grand Prix kicks off on January 23rd. The first stage will be played in Rome, Italy. Takuji Kashiwabara won the EGP 9 times, will 2016 be his 10th victory?
Links: Othello News EGP Rome EGP Federation EGP Rome FB FNGO website |
start of the tourney, final instructions
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Final Othello Bus Tour: Yasushi Nagano - Kunihiko Tanida
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Yasushi Nagano wins 103rd Coastal Challenge CupLocation: Japan
Date: January 16th Tourney format: 6 rounds Swiss Link: JOA website A 5-point victory for Yasushi Nagano at the 103rd Coastal Challenge Cup. Runner-up was Daisuke Kamikura who also scored 5 points. Third place for Tetsuya Nakajima with 4 points. Yasushi recently also won the 108th Shinagawa Seaside Othello Open in December. The picture (left), was taken at the final of the Othello Bus Tour(nament) organised by the JOA organised as a pre-tourney session for the 10th Ouza-sen. For the final the organisation selected a perfect spot in Mito Kairaku-en park. The final Kunihiko Tanida - Yasushi Nagano was won by Yasushi Nagano. |
Kim J. Nielsen wins Rørby Othello Open 2016Location: Rørby, Denmark
Date: January 16th Tourney format: 7 rounds Swiss Link: FB event page Two players finished with 6 points, the winner Kim J. Nielsen and runner-up Jens Aagaard-Hansen. Jens won the game against Kim in round 3, but then lost against Erik Lund Jensen in round 4. Peter Michaelsen finished 4th as best amateur and Frederik Poulsen was the best junior and beginner. Congratulations to Kim, the new "King of Rørby"! The Dansk Othello Forbund's next tourney is the Lolland-Falster Othello Open 2016 on Februari 13th. |
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The Nordvestnyt paper ran an article on the Rørby Othello Open. It is a fine coverage and fun that they got a photo of the tourney's table judge, "Kalle" the cat.
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Kazuki Okamoto wins 8th Kyoto TournamentLocation: Kyoto, Japan
Date: January 10th Tourney format: 6 rounds Swiss Link: JOA website, Takuya Yamazaki blog Twenty players at this tournament. Winner with 5 points was Kazuki Okamoto. Kazuki Okamoto was runner-up at the World Othello Championship in Leeuwarden in 2012, he won the WOC the next year in Stockholm and he finished third at the WOC in Bangkok in 2013. I have no doubt that he works hard at qualifying for the Japanese team that will play at the WOC in Mito, end of this year. But, so are all the other players. Runner-up at this tournament was Yuji Miyazaki, he also scored 5 points. 第8回京都順位戦 混戦を制したのは岡本九段！ |
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Alessandro di Mattei wins 1° Stage Città di Roma 2016Location: Rome, Italy
Date: January 10th Tourney format: 5 rounds Swiss Link: FNGO website, pictures on FB by PantaBros Thirteen players at this tournament. Alessandro di Matei won the tourney undefeated with 5 wins. Runner-up was Roberto Sperandio with 4 points. Five players scored 3 points. The tournament for juniors was won by Valentino Giannini. 
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pictures thanks to PantaBros
Roel Hobo wins 78th Dutch Othello Open
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Location: Alkmaar, Netherlands
Date: January 10th Tourney format: 7 rounds Swiss Link: NOV website Roel Hobo won the tournament with a perfect score of 7 points. His first victory in 2016, on his way to Mito. Runner-up is Jan de Graaf and third place for Marcel Sneek. An excellent performance by Wendy de Graaf. She scored 4 points and almost beat her father and Marcel Sneek. 
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Keita Ohmori wins 96th Kanagawa OpenLocation: Kawasaki in Kanagawa, Japan
Date: January 10th Tourney format: 6 rounds Swiss Winner of this tournament with 33 players was Keita Ohmori with 6 wins!! Unfortunately for her, Yukiko Tatsumi lost the final game against Keita Ohmori, so she finished as first runnner-up with 5 wins. 3rd place for Jo Nakano with 4.5 wins. |
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Elementary School Othello Convention
Location: Sakae Sanjo City, Japan
Date: January 10th
Tourney format: 4 rounds
Link: Niigata block FB page
10 kids gathered for Othello instruction followed by a 4 round tourney. Winner was Riho Umezawa. Well done!!
Date: January 10th
Tourney format: 4 rounds
Link: Niigata block FB page
10 kids gathered for Othello instruction followed by a 4 round tourney. Winner was Riho Umezawa. Well done!!
Othello News Control RoomThe Othello News Desk waits for your 2016 Othello News stories, results and pictures. Please mail us your info, Othello enthusiasts from all over the world are interested to read about your tourneys and other Othello events.
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European Grand Prix 2016The 2016 European Grand Prix kicks off on January2 3rd. The first stage will be played in Rome, Italy. Takuji Kashiwabara won the EGP 9 times, will 2016 be his 10th victory?
For more data visit Tom Schotte's EGP Statistics at Othello News. Thanks Tom for all your work and I hope 2016 will be a statistically fascinating EGP year. 
EGP Champions 1986 - 2015
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EGP Crossword Puzzle
Makoto Suekuni wins Shinagawa New Years Open 2016
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Makoto Suekuni and Yukiko Tatsumi started 2016 well
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TATSUMI Yukiko (timeout) - MURAKAMI Takeshi Shinagawa New Years Cup 2016, round 1 |
TANIDA Kunihiko 31-33 MURAKAMI Takeshi Shinagawa New Years Cup 2016, round 2 |
SUEKUNI Makoto 44-20 MURAKAMI Takeshi Shinagawa New Years Cup 2016, round 6 |
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Othello Graph interviewed Masaki TakizawaRecently a very interesting interview with Masaki Takizawa was posted at Satoshi Koide's Othello Graph website. Masaki Takizawa won the World Othello Championship in 1985 and in 1994. He won the All Japan Championship in 1995, 1994 and 2009.
If you want to read more (in english), Romy Hidayat interviewed Takizawa at the OWC in Singapore in 2014 for Othello News. |
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One of the first endurance tournaments was played in 1984 in Pontoise, just outside Paris. 8 players met for 24 hours ! Of course, Manu was the fastest, as usual, to tell you that we had had 24-hour tournaments outside of Japan (though I never played in any of them). |
37th Othello Meijin-Sen
第37期 オセロ名人戦全国大会 概要
The 37th Meijin-Sen will be held March 19 - 20 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. Info can be found on the Japan Othello Association website. This is your chance to play at two great Othello events in Japan in 2016, the Mejin-Sen and the WOC in November in Mito. Application deadline is set at February 20th. Read about the 36th Meijin March 2015 here.
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Meijin-Sen winners 1980 - 2015
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