Becoming world champion - again
Please tell us a bit about regaining the world title - how did it feel?
I had mixed feelings: I sure felt happy, but at the same time I felt sorry for Brian Rose, who lost in the final. He is a good friend of mine, and he waited for 18 long years to reach the final again after he was
defeated in the final of the 4th World Championship in Brussels. His play
in the preliminary rounds was outstanding: out of 13 games he only drew one
game and lost another. Nobody questions Rose's caliber as one of the very
best players. I am sure he will have his day sometime soon.
Was the result a surprise? I assume that you still must be one of the very top favorites. And I guess you may have felt surprised, but perhaps your competitors were less surprised?
As you pointed out, I guess many players were not surprised with my victory, because I was one of only two players (the other is David Shaman of Netherlands) at the tournament who had won World Championships more than once. I also came from Japan, which has produced by far the largest number of champions (Japanese players have won 19 world championships out of 24, while Americans have won three and French the other two). So obviously I was the top favorite.
But still, I was surprised, mainly for three reasons. First, there was a record number of players (46) from a record number of countries (20), and this World Championship was undoubtedly the most competitive ever. Second, I was out of practice due mainly to family obligations ever since my first child was born in August, 1999.
Last but not least, it is getting increasingly difficult for me to maintain good health during the tournament. It takes a long flight to come to the host country (mostly European) from Japan, and coupled with the extra work I have to finish before the tournament (I have to take a week off my job to participate a world championship, which is held for three days), merely showing up at the tournament can be quite exhausting. The jet lag is also bad. And often the food of the host country is too rich and greasy for a Japanese stomach.
When I first played in the world championship in Paris in 1988, I was 23 and none of the above affected me the slightest. But I am 36 now, and playing at the world championship is getting more and more physically draining. I had caught a cold in the plane from Tokyo, and I was in quite bad shape during the competition in Copenhagen.
I find it rather amazing that you could be the oldest player in the recent world championship - is Othello becoming a game for ever younger players, like chess? Are there child prodigies in Othello as well?
I myself am amazed that I broke the record set by Jonathan Cerf of the United States in 1980. In Japan, it has long been said that Othello is a game for young players. In fact, after Cerf the World Championships have been dominated by players in their teens and twenties. It was not until 1996 that a player (me) in their thirties won again.
Of course the domination of young players is partly due to the short history of Othello. Othello was invented only 28 years ago, and it is quite natural that players who have played Othello from age 10 to age 30 are stronger than players who have played from age 30 to 50.
In 20 years there will be players in their fifties who have played since they were in their teens. It will not be until then that we know for sure Othello is a game for younger players or not.
Meanwhile, there are child prodigies in Othello. At Copenhagen, Tim Krzywonos of Canada and Benjamin Shifman of Israel came in equal fourth. They played a playoff, which Krzywonos won. Krzywonos then lost to Brian Rose of the United States at the semifinal.
Although both Krzywonos and Shifman are in high school and have only a few years of tournament experience, they played brilliantly and finished higher than most of the more experienced players.
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