is a Japanese
professional shogi player ranked 5-
dan
Dan or DAN may refer to:
People
* Dan (name), including a list of people with the name
** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark
* Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa
**Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoi ...
.
Early life and education
Watanabe was born on October 6, 1984, in
Shinjuku,
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
. He learned how to play shogi from his father when he was about five years old,
and was accepted into the
Japan Shogi Association
The , or JSA, is the primary organizing body for professional shogi in Japan. The JSA sets the professional calendar, negotiates sponsorship and media promotion deals, helps organize tournaments and title matches, publishes shogi-related materia ...
's
apprentice school under the guidance of shogi professional
Takahiro Toyokawa at the rank of 6-
kyū
is a Japanese term used in modern martial arts as well as in tea ceremony, flower arranging, Go, shogi, academic tests and other similar activities to designate various grades, levels or degrees of proficiency or experience. In Mandarin Chi ...
in February 2008.
He was promoted to the rank of apprentice professional 3-dan in April 2013,
but finished with a record of 1 win and 17 losses in his first season of
3-dan League (54th 3-dan League October 2013March 2014). Encouraged not to give up and not to worry about being demoted to 2-dan by his
mentor
Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
Toyokawa,
Watanabe's results improved and he finally obtained
full professional status and the corresponding rank of 4-dan in October 2019 after winning the 65th
3-dan League (April 2019September 2019) with a record of 16 wins and 2 losses.
Watanabe has stated that he has been interested in the study of
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
ever since he was a young boy. After graduating from high school, he enrolled in
Taisho University because he wanted to broaden his horizons instead of just focusing on shogi. He graduated from the university in 2016.
Promotion history
Watanabe's
promotion history is as follows.
* 6-kyū: February 2008
* 3-dan: October 2013
* 4-dan: October 1, 2019
* 5-dan: March 10, 2022
Awards and honors
Watanabe won the Japan Shogi Association's
Annual Shogi Award
The Annual Shogi Awards (将棋大賞 ''shōgi taishō'') are a number of prizes awarded yearly by the Japan Shogi Association to professional and amateur shogi players who have achieved particular success. The first Annual Shogi Awards were pre ...
for "Most Consecutive Games Won" with 20 straight wins in 2022.
References
External links
*ShogiHub
Professional Player Info · Watanabe, Kazushi
Japanese shogi players
Living people
Professional shogi players
People from Shinjuku
Professional shogi players from Tokyo
1994 births
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