Othello News October
Yusuke Takanashi (JPN) won the 2015 World Othello Championship. He won the final in two games against the defending champion Makoto Suekuni (JPN). This was the fourth time that Yusuke competed at the Worlds and the fourth time he won the World Championship. He previously won in 2009, 2010 and 2012. Third place for Nicky van den Biggelaar and fourth place forMichele Borassi. Yoko Sano Rose (USA) won the title of Ladies Champion for the first time. She won second place in 2011 (playing for Japan). Second place for Nida Pattarakul (THA) Best team is Japan, for the 13th time and the 11th time in a row. |
World Othello Championship, where to find Othello Newslinks to results and reports
World Othello Championship, where to find the WOF News |
Message by Benkt Steentoft
We are ready for W.O.C. 2015!! Are you?? Dear all Othello friends! Today 06:00 PM (London time) the Reception for the World Othello Championship 2015 will start. It will me some welcome speech and after that the traditional first round pairings. You will find some of it online. Check all live-channels and informations at the official World Othello Federation's WOC website . Tomorrow the games will start. Who is your favourites to win? Who will be best team? Can any team beat the Japanese team this year? Will the four highest rated players also be the semi-finalists? What do you think? As head Tournemant director I will welcome all players and crews to the W.O.C. 2015. But I also want to welcome you all to W.O.C. 2015 in Cambridge. Where ever you are in the world, you welcome, to check LiveOthello and comment there, check games, discuss W.O.C. with friends, and hope your teams players will be good! OthelloNews will do all they can to update you with all you need and want to know, Do you have any wishes what we should write about; tell us! Link to Othello News WOC page and Othello news Twitter account. We are ready for W.O.C. 2015!! Are you?? |
...... and back to 6th WOC 1982 in Stockholm
Kunihiko Tanida, World Othello Champion 1982, recently posted an album with pictures of the 6th World Othello Championship on Facebook. One of the players from 1982 will be playing at the upcoming 39th World Othello Championship in Cambridge UK: Karsten Feldborg wiil play at his 27th WOC!
"I am posting most of photos of WOC 1982 that I have. I was feeling a bit embarrassing about unveiling them to public when I was much younger, but now I am aged enough to be able to feel proud of what I did when I was 15 years old. In addition, I think it is about the time to thank all the people who trained me and gave me such a precious opportunity, by posting these photos." |
3rd/4th playoff: Pier Andrea Morolli 35-29 Luc Bruyninckx Result Final WOC 1982: Kunihiko Tanida 34-30 David Shaman David Shaman 31-33 Kunihiko Tanida |
Japan, Italy and Usa, the best 3 teams at WOC?
With the latest players rating available, I recalculated my list of top teams based on WOF rating (October 23rd). Top 3 teams are Japan, Italy and USA. Note that teams with 3 players or more, but less than 3 with an official WOF rating, were excluded from the list.
Team Final Ranking WOC rules
The final ranking list used to determine the World Othello Team Champion will be drafted as follows: the officials will calculate for each team the sum of the points scored by its members (in case of a four players team, only the three best results will be used to calculate the sum), and the ranking list will be drawn up according to this sum. (If the host country has provided an additional player, the points scored by the designated additional player will not be taken into account if the team is already composed of at least three players). In case of a tie for first place, the country with the greatest number of games between members of its team shall be declared the champion. If two or more teams are still tied for first place, the team having the top player in the IFRL (using the final list, with MBS followed by disc-count being used to separate the contestants) will take preference. In case of a further tie, the team whose second-ranked player is higher in the IFRL will take preference. In case of a further tie, the tied teams will be declared equal.
The final ranking list used to determine the World Othello Team Champion will be drafted as follows: the officials will calculate for each team the sum of the points scored by its members (in case of a four players team, only the three best results will be used to calculate the sum), and the ranking list will be drawn up according to this sum. (If the host country has provided an additional player, the points scored by the designated additional player will not be taken into account if the team is already composed of at least three players). In case of a tie for first place, the country with the greatest number of games between members of its team shall be declared the champion. If two or more teams are still tied for first place, the team having the top player in the IFRL (using the final list, with MBS followed by disc-count being used to separate the contestants) will take preference. In case of a further tie, the team whose second-ranked player is higher in the IFRL will take preference. In case of a further tie, the tied teams will be declared equal.
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Daniel Dantas wins Brazil Othello Championship
![]() Location: Paulista, Brazil
Date: October 18th Link: Federação Brasileira de Othello Daniel Dantas won the first unofficial Brazilian Championship of Othello in 2004. He finished 4th last year and in 2008. In 2013 he finished 3rd and in 2009 he finished 2nd place. This year he finally won the official title of Brazil Othello Champion. Congrats! Final result:
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Marc Tastet wins Ile de France 6Location: Paris, France
Date: October 18th Tourney format: 7 rounds Two new players at this tournament, Svetlana Russkikh and Guillaume Enguehard. The FFO hopes they enjoyed the tournament and that they will return a next time. Marc Tastet won the tournament with 7 wins. We declare him "ready for the WOC". Thanks to Bintsa, we can show you some nice pictures. |
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Daisuke Kamikura wins 16th Shinagawa Super League
Location: Shinagawa, Japan
Date: October 12th Links: JOA website, Othello! Japan and Murakami's blog Tourney format: 6 rounds Interesting tourney with 2 members of the Japanese WOC team, Yusuke Takanashi and Makoto Suekuni. Three players finished with 5 wins, Daisuke Kamikura, Takashi Yamakawa and Takeshi Murakami. Thanks to Takeshi Murakami's blog, we can reproduce a couple of interesting games. Final ranking of all 13 players:
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SUEKUNI Makoto 27 - 37 MURAKAMI Takeshi 16th Shinagawa Super League, round 4 |
NAKAJIMA Tetsuya 24 - 40 MURAKAMI Takeshi 16th Shinagawa Super League, round 5 |
TAKANASHI Yusuke 28 - 36 MURAKAMI Takeshi 16th Shinagawa Super League, round 6 |
Othello at school in ItalyProf. Maura Privitera introduced Othello at the "Don Bosco-Francesco d'Assisi" school in Torre Del Greco, Italy. She organised a presentation of the game in several classes with use of an interactive board. Subsequently the students played some games and they seemed quite interested. The FNGO will support the organization of a school Othello tournament, if enough students are willing to enter.
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WOC Cambridge, 66 players have registered

October 17th, 66 players plus a British reserve player have registered for the WOC in Cambridge. The list of players at the WOF official WOC website has been updated with players pictures and additional info.
The strongest team surely is the Japanese team. Yusuke Takanashi competed 3 times and won 3 times. Makoto Suekuni will want to keep the title he won last year. Junya Ito, third man on the Japanese team, well, he may officially be a WOC newbie, but he is a great player. After having won the OWC in 2013, I am sure he is eager to also win the WOC. The Japanese lady, Asuka Funatsu, won the Ladies title at the All Japan Championship last July. She definitely is in the race for the Female Championship at the WOC.
Takuji Kashiwabara (FRA) and Nicky van den Biggelaar (NLD) are the two seeded players who never reached the final. It's about time they did. Piyanat Aunchulee was a finalist two times, but never won. Maybe third time lucky?
Makoto Suekuni reinvented his 1997 Championship last year in Bangkok. Maybe one of the other two "Stone Age" Othello heroes, Marc Tastet and Imre Leader, can pull the same trick?
Good luck to all and I am sure we will all have a great time at the 39th WOC!
The strongest team surely is the Japanese team. Yusuke Takanashi competed 3 times and won 3 times. Makoto Suekuni will want to keep the title he won last year. Junya Ito, third man on the Japanese team, well, he may officially be a WOC newbie, but he is a great player. After having won the OWC in 2013, I am sure he is eager to also win the WOC. The Japanese lady, Asuka Funatsu, won the Ladies title at the All Japan Championship last July. She definitely is in the race for the Female Championship at the WOC.
Takuji Kashiwabara (FRA) and Nicky van den Biggelaar (NLD) are the two seeded players who never reached the final. It's about time they did. Piyanat Aunchulee was a finalist two times, but never won. Maybe third time lucky?
Makoto Suekuni reinvented his 1997 Championship last year in Bangkok. Maybe one of the other two "Stone Age" Othello heroes, Marc Tastet and Imre Leader, can pull the same trick?
Good luck to all and I am sure we will all have a great time at the 39th WOC!

WOC Finalists and Champions:
Brian Rose (USA): 1981, 2000 and 2001 (winner)
Imre Leader (Great Britain): 1983
Marc Tastet France): 1992 (winner)
Karsten Feldborg (Denmark): 1994
Makoto Suekuni (Japan): 1997 (winner), 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2014 (winner)
Ben Seeley (USA): 2002, 2003 (winner), 2004 (winner) and 2014
Michele Borassi (Italy), 2008 (winner) and 2010
Matthias Berg (Germany): 2009
Yusuke Takanashi (Japan), 2009 (winner), 2010 (winner) and 2012 (winner)
Piyanat Aunchulee (Thailand), 2011 and 2013
Seeded players:
A player is considered a "seeded" player when he / she has played in the semifinal of at least 1 of the last 10 World Othello Championships.
Yusuke Takanashi (Japan), winner 2009, 2010 and 2012
Makoto Suekuni (Japan), winner 1997, 2nd place 2003, 2004 and 2006, 3rd in 2009 and winner in 2014
Ben Seeley (USA): 2nd place in 2002, winner in 2003 and 2004, 3rd in 2006 and 2nd in 2014
Piyanat Aunchulee (Thailand), 3rd place in 2010, 2nd in 2011 and 2013
Nicky van den Biggelaar (Netherlands), 3rd place in 2011, 4th in 2012 and 2013
Michele Borassi (Italy), winner 2008, 2nd place 2010
Imre Leader (Great Britain): 2nd place 1983, 4th place in 1986, 3rd in 1988, 4th in 1994, 3rd in 2002, 4th place in 2010
Takuji Kashiwabara (France): 4th place 2002, 3rd place 2005
Matthias Berg (Germany): 4th place 2001, 3rd place 2007 and 2008, 2nd in 2009, 4th in 2011
Female Finalists:
Jiska Helmes (Netherlands): 2010 (winner)
Yoko Sano Rose (USA): 2011 (played for Japan)
Links: World Othello Federation WOC Cambridge registered teams and registered players and Othello News players page.
Brian Rose (USA): 1981, 2000 and 2001 (winner)
Imre Leader (Great Britain): 1983
Marc Tastet France): 1992 (winner)
Karsten Feldborg (Denmark): 1994
Makoto Suekuni (Japan): 1997 (winner), 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2014 (winner)
Ben Seeley (USA): 2002, 2003 (winner), 2004 (winner) and 2014
Michele Borassi (Italy), 2008 (winner) and 2010
Matthias Berg (Germany): 2009
Yusuke Takanashi (Japan), 2009 (winner), 2010 (winner) and 2012 (winner)
Piyanat Aunchulee (Thailand), 2011 and 2013
Seeded players:
A player is considered a "seeded" player when he / she has played in the semifinal of at least 1 of the last 10 World Othello Championships.
Yusuke Takanashi (Japan), winner 2009, 2010 and 2012
Makoto Suekuni (Japan), winner 1997, 2nd place 2003, 2004 and 2006, 3rd in 2009 and winner in 2014
Ben Seeley (USA): 2nd place in 2002, winner in 2003 and 2004, 3rd in 2006 and 2nd in 2014
Piyanat Aunchulee (Thailand), 3rd place in 2010, 2nd in 2011 and 2013
Nicky van den Biggelaar (Netherlands), 3rd place in 2011, 4th in 2012 and 2013
Michele Borassi (Italy), winner 2008, 2nd place 2010
Imre Leader (Great Britain): 2nd place 1983, 4th place in 1986, 3rd in 1988, 4th in 1994, 3rd in 2002, 4th place in 2010
Takuji Kashiwabara (France): 4th place 2002, 3rd place 2005
Matthias Berg (Germany): 4th place 2001, 3rd place 2007 and 2008, 2nd in 2009, 4th in 2011
Female Finalists:
Jiska Helmes (Netherlands): 2010 (winner)
Yoko Sano Rose (USA): 2011 (played for Japan)
Links: World Othello Federation WOC Cambridge registered teams and registered players and Othello News players page.
The top WOC tourneys with regard to number of players:
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Anne Dorbeck wins 6th Burijn Othello Open
Location: Alkmaar, Netherlands
Date: October 13th Link: NOV website Another fun tournament organised by Jan de Graaf and Marcel Sneek at the elementary school "De Burijn". |
Jihoon Chung wins Myeong-in-jeon (Korea Masters)
Location: Seoul, South Korea
Date: October 3 - 4 Tourney fomat: day 1: 7 rounds Swiss, day 2: semi-final and final (3 games respectively) and 3rd place playoff. This was the first Myeong-in-jeon (Korea Masters). From now on it will be held annually. Only qualified players (professional Dan) can participate. Jihoon Chung became the first Myeong-in (winner of Myeong-in-jeon) and is promoted to 6 Dan. Runner-up is Dukchul Shin who finished top on day 1. He moves up to 4 Dan. 3rd is Kwanyoon Kim, and 4th is Joungmok Oh. The Korean Dan-Geup system is divided into professional Dan and amateur Dan. There are 9 professional Dan, 7 amateur Dan, and 18 Geup. 9 professional Dan is the highest, 18 Geup is the lowest. |
Tetsuya Nakajima wins 100th Coastal Challenge Cup
Location: Japan
Date: October 10th Tourney format: 6 rounds Link: JOA website An undefeated victory for Tetsuya Nakajima. Yoshinori Ohike finished second and Yusuke Takanashi finished third, both with 4 wins. |
Othello at Romics
Romics is a semiannual Comic Book, Animation, and Gaming convention in Rome, Italy. The event takes place over four days, usually during April for the spring edition, and October for the autumn one.
The FNGO was present at the covention last weekend and says hi to all participants of Romics (more than 200.000 visitors) and especially those who have stopped to play Othello. We hope you had fun.
The FNGO was present at the covention last weekend and says hi to all participants of Romics (more than 200.000 visitors) and especially those who have stopped to play Othello. We hope you had fun.
pictures by Chiara Gigliucci
more pictures by Biagio Privitera here
more pictures by Biagio Privitera here
Miłosz Cupiał wins Polish Othello Championship
Location: Warsaw, Poland
Date: October 4th Tourney format: 9 rounds Miłosz Cupiał won the Polish Championship with a perfect score of 9 wins. Miłosz is not going to the WOC. The Polish team consists of: Barlomiej Sury, Robert Zaniewski and Michal Buka. 1: Cupial, Milosz, 9 pnts 2: Sury, Barlomiej, 7.5 pnts Zaniewski, Robert, 7.5 pnts 4: Nowicki, Jaroslaw, 6 pnts 5: Buka, Michal, 5 pnts 6: Gregorczyk, Szymon, 4 pnts 7: Sielska, Majka, 3 pnts 8: Wichtowski, Roland, 2 pnts 9: Kaczor, Agnieszka, 1 pnts 10: Pawlowicz, Grzegorz, 0 pnts |