Tengen (天元, ''center'' or ''origin of heaven'') is a
Go competition
This is a list of professional Go tournaments, for competitors in the board game of ''Go''. The tradition, initiated by the Honinbo Tournament in Japan, is for an event to be run annually, leading up to a title match and the award of a title f ...
in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
The name Tengen refers to the
center point on a
Go board.
The event is held annually, and has run continuously since its inauguration in 1975.
Tengen competition (天元戦)
The Tengen competition is a Go tournament run by the
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
Nihon-Kiin
The Nihon Ki-in (), also known as the Japan Go Association, is the main organizational body for Go in Japan, overseeing Japan's professional system and issuing diplomas for amateur dan rankings. It is based in Tokyo. The other major Go associat ...
and
Kansai-Kiin
The Kansai Ki-in (), i.e., Kansai Go Association, is an organizational body for the game of Go in Japan, which was founded by Hashimoto Utaro in 1950. Though it is not as large as its chief rival, the Nihon Ki-in, it also issues diplomas to str ...
. The Tengen is the 5th of the 7 big titles in Japanese Go.
It has the same format as the other tournaments. There is a preliminary tournament, which is single
knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...
, where the winner faces the holder in a best-of-five match.
Before the 6th Tengen, the format was different. Instead of the title holder waiting for a challenger, it would be the two
Go players
This article gives an overview of well-known professional and amateur players of the board game Go throughout the ages. The page has been divided into sections based on the era in which the Go players played and the country in which they pla ...
left from the single knockout tournament who then played a best-of-five match to determine the holder.
The tournament was formed from a merger between the
Nihon Ki-in
The Nihon Ki-in (), also known as the Japan Go Association, is the main organizational body for Go in Japan, overseeing Japan's professional system and issuing diplomas for amateur dan rankings. It is based in Tokyo. The other major Go associat ...
and
Kansai Ki-in
The Kansai Ki-in (), i.e., Kansai Go Association, is an organizational body for the game of Go in Japan, which was founded by Hashimoto Utaro in 1950. Though it is not as large as its chief rival, the Nihon Ki-in, it also issues diplomas to stron ...
championships. The former ran from 1954 to 1975.
Past winners
Trivia
* The first player to defend the title was Kato Masao who won four consecutive terms in the 4th-7th Tengen.
* Rin Kaiho surpassed this with a record five consecutive wins in the 15th-19th Tengen.
* Iyama Yuta equaled this record in the 41st-45th terms, and has won the title a record eight times over nine terms starting with the 37th.
See also
*
Honorary Tengen
*
Go professional
A Go professional is a professional player of the game of Go. The minimum standard to acquire a professional diploma through one of the major Go organisations is very high. The competition is tremendous, and prize incentives for champion players ...
*
China–Japan Tengen
*
China–Korea Tengen
*
International Go Federation
The International Go Federation (IGF) is an international organization that connects the various national Go federations around the world.
Role
The role of the IGF is to promote the sport of Go throughout the world, promote amicable relations ...
References
External links
Full tournament grid since the 33rd editionFull tournament results and game records
{{Tengen
Tengen