is a Japanese professional

Go player 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 play ...

. She became the youngest ever professional Go player in Japan on April 1, 2019. She made her professional debut on April 22, 2019 in the preliminary round of the Ryusei tournament in western Japan at age 10 years and one month, breaking the record held by

Rina Fujisawa Rina Fujisawa (藤沢里菜 ''Fujisawa Rina'', born 18 September 1998) is a Japanese professional Go player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop g ...

in 2010 at age 11 years and 8 months. She is also the first Go player to turn pro under

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 ...

's special screening system for "prospective, talented" players who can compete with top players from other countries.

Biography

Born in 2009 in Tokyo, Japan, Nakamura is the daughter of Shinya Nakamura, a 9-dan professional Go player. She started playing the ancient board game with her father when she was three and has been competing in national tournaments in Japan since she was seven. At the end of her first calendar year (2019) as a professional, the Power Report (for December 30, 2019) says "Sumire’s record for the first 'year' (actually nine months) of her career was 17–7, a winning record of 70.8%. These stats were the best of the 13 new 1-dans who debuted in 2019." According to "''The Power Report: Woman power hits Japanese go''" at

American Go Association The American Go Association (AGA) was founded in 1935, to promote the board game of Go in the United States. Founded by chess master Edward Lasker and some friends at Chumley's restaurant in New York City, the AGA is one of the oldest Western ...

's ''E-Journal'', Nakamura is doing amazingly well in the first third of 2021 (January 1 to April 30). For this period, she has the most wins (21 wins to 2 losses) at the Nihon Ki-in, the best streak of consecutive wins (10 wins since March 18), and the best winning percentage (91.3% with no rivals of either gender in sight). The parents of Nakamura Sumire decided to send her to South Korea for Go training in 2017 because they believed she needed more challenging opponents to continue improving her skills. On 6 February 2023, at the age of 13 years and 11 months, Nakamura became the youngest ever winner of the Women's Kisei. She defeated defending champion

Ueno Asami , born 26 October 2001, is a Japanese professional Go player at 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 dipl ...

by two games to one. In September 2023, it was revealed that Sumire had applied to the

Korea Baduk Association The Korea Baduk Association, also known as Hanguk Kiwon (), is the organization that oversees Go (''baduk'') and Go tournaments in South Korea. It was founded in 1945 by Cho Namchul as the ''Hanseong Kiwon''. Baduk is a game which was present ...

to play professionally in South Korea. She remains in Japan through February 2024. She continued to compete in Nihon Ki-in matches during that time, particularly the Women's Kisei title defense match in February 2024, which she lost to Ueno Risa. She secured her first title on June 10, 2024, just three months after transferring to South Korea, defeating Yu-Jin Oh (오유진) in the finals of the International Go Chunhyang Selection Tournament (국제바둑춘향 선발대회)..

References

External links

Sumire Nakamura – Nihon Ki-in profile
(in Japanese)
Sumire Nakamura – Korea Baduk Association profile
(in Korean)
10-year-old Japanese go professional debuts on international stage

The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...

, May 21, 2019
Nakamura Sumire official games
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakamura, Sumire Living people 2009 births Japanese female Go players 21st-century Go players People from Tokyo People from Osaka 21st-century Japanese sportswomen