Tuesday, January 30, 2024

世锦赛荣归林会长设宴

At the 18th World Xiangqi Championship held in Houston in the United States November last year, the Singapore Men's Team won the Team Championship and the Women's Team won third place. Wu Zhonghan and Wu Lanxiang finished third in the Men's and Women's Individual Competitions respectively, while Liu Yihao, one of the members of the Men's Team, finished eighth in the Individual Competition.

On the evening of 28 December, the President of the Singapore Xiangqi Association, Mr. Lin Guanhao, hosted a grand banquet at the Senior Police Officers Club to congratulate the team members, attended among others, by Permanent Honorary President Sun Jingting, Honorary President Liang Qiyun, Honorary President and Administrative Manager Liang Peiling, Secretary General Ou Mushun, team leader Weng Wenlong, players Wu Zonghan, Wu Lanxiang and Chen Mingfang, and other staff and supporters.

(象棋通讯)时间过得飞快,转眼2024年的2月将到。

去年11月在美国休斯敦举行的第18届世界象棋锦标赛,新加坡男队获得男子团体赛冠军,女队获得女子团体赛季军;吴宗翰和吴兰香分别获得男子及女子个人赛第三,男队成员之一的刘亿豪获得个人赛第八,总体成绩优异,创下新加坡象棋的历史新高。12月28日晚,新加坡象棋总会会长林关浩先生在高级警官俱乐部隆重设宴,表达祝贺,出席者有永久名誉会长孙敬亭、名誉会长梁启云、名誉会长兼行政经理梁佩玲、秘书长欧木顺,领队翁文龙、棋手吴宗翰、吴兰香、陈茗芳。

云伟龙、李锡森、赵金山因有事,刘亿豪则因身体不适,未能出席。

席间,林会长宣布日前李锡森捐助$5000,孙敬亭捐助$2000,梁佩玲捐助$1000,其中$6000作为奖励金,予吴宗翰$2000、刘亿豪$2000,吴兰香$1000,陈茗芳$1000,由孙敬亭、梁佩玲及梁启云为胜利归来的棋手颁发,希望他们继续加油为新加坡争光,及为象棋的发展作出更多更大的贡献!

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Sunday, December 24, 2023

英国棋手战平中越冠亚

Tian He, the representive from UK, was placed 7th in the 18th World Xiangqi Championship held in US last month, he drew his games with the Champion Meng Chen of China, and with the runner-up Lai Ly Huynh of Vietnam.

(美国棋讯)回顾第18届在美国举办的世界象棋锦标赛,来自英国的欧洲唯一参赛棋手代表田菏,第一次参赛,取得可喜成绩,在男子个人赛中,力压众多高手,排名第七,令人刮目相看。

11月20日上午,田菏先手负(香港)郑彦隆。同日下午,田菏后手胜(加拿大)郑德铭。

11月21日上午,田菏先手胜(东马)叶乃传。同日下午,田菏后手胜(日本)曾根敏彦。

11月22日上午,田菏先手胜(马来西亚)黎德志。同日下午,田菏后手战平(中国)孟辰。

11月23日上午,田菏先手战平(越南)赖理兄。同日下午,田菏后手负新加坡吴宗翰。

11月24日第9轮,田菏后手战平(新加坡)刘亿豪。

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报导者:小C

Monday, November 27, 2023

Meng Chen & Tang Sinan The New World Champions

The 18th World Xiangqi Championship hosted in Houston, is drawing to a close with an electrifying final that crowned new champions -- Meng Chen(孟辰)and Tang Sinan(唐思楠)of Team China.

Demonstrating the global appeal of Xiangqi, which is often referred to as Chinese chess, the one-week prestigious event ended on Saturday night, marking the first time the tournament has been held on American soil.

In the edge-of-the-seat Men's Final held on Friday,world Vietnamese star Lai Ly Huynh(赖理兄)clashed with Chinese Grandmaster Meng Chen in a game brimming with skillful plays and opportunities.

Lai appeared poised to clinch his first World Championship title, dominating the early stages of the match.

However, a pivotal error in the endgame led to a draw, pushing the match into a high-stakes sudden-death tie-breaker. Here, Meng's persistence and skill shone through.

Despite the challenge of moving second, he managed a stunning comeback to defeat Lai.

"Persistence. I told myself I need to be patient. I'm glad I got a second chance and I took it," said Meng, who won the title for the first time in his career.

In the Women's part, a dramatic narrative unfolded as Tang Sinan stepped into the spotlight, amassing a total of 13 points over two matches to claim the Women's World Champion on Thursday.

This landmark achievement marks Tang's elevation to the esteemed rank of Grandmaster, a significant milestone in her Xiangqi career.

Tang's victory was a testament to her dedication and skill, eliciting emotions of joy and gratitude.

She said: "It's the most important moment in my life! I feel honored to represent Team China and glad that I clinched it!"

Tang Sinan, alongside teammate Liu Huan(刘欢), also played a crucial role in securing the Women's team championship for China.

The American team, with Matthew Boey(梅俊海)and Olivier Tessier(特斯尔), showed potential despite not topping the leaderboard. Boey earned a commendable eight points, including a victory over teammate Tessier. Both players are determined to continue improving and return to the world stage.

The championship transcended competition, acting as a cultural bridge and fostering sportsmanship among players from diverse backgrounds.

"I had a good time! There's no easy game and players are strong. I'll continue working and hopefully I'll do better next time," said Tessier.

Reflecting on his journey with Xiangqi, Boey said: "It's a marvelous event. I started playing this game more than 20 years ago in the military. Learning Chinese and Xiangqi together improved my language skills significantly."

In the concurrently held 4th World Youth Xiangqi Championship, young Chinese players captured three gold medals.

Among them, Liu Baihong(刘柏宏)won the U16 boys' championship, earning the title of National Chess Master; Zhou Yufei(周雨菲)won the U16 girls' championship. Yuan Weihao(袁玮浩)and Wang Sikai(王思凯)secured the U12 championship and runner-up titles, respectively.

"The tournament has been a bridge between the rich traditions of Xiangqi and the enthusiasm of American audiences," said Hu Yushan(胡玉山), Chairman of the Houston Xiangqi Association.

The World Xiangqi Federation (WXF), the American Xiangqi Association, the Houston Xiangqi Association, and the Houston Sports Authority are collaboratively hosting this significant event, which attracted a total of 84 participants from 13 countries and regions.

The inaugural World Xiangqi Championship took place in Singapore in 1990.

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Source: Go to China.org
发布者:Stephen Cho
日期:2023-11-26

Saturday, November 25, 2023

孟辰勇夺世界象棋冠军

(象棋通讯)2023年世界象棋锦标赛,来自中国的特级大师孟辰勇夺男子世界冠军。

第18届世界象棋锦标赛十一月二十五日宣告落幕,孟辰夺得冠军,成为中国的第十位世界棋王。

2023年的世锦赛,中国队共获得男子个人、女子个人、女子团体、十六岁以下男子、十六岁以下女子,及十二岁以下男子组六项金牌。

孟辰二十四日在决赛中,与越南名将赖理兄再度相遇,首盘慢棋较量,孟辰后手而子少,局势不利,艰苦周旋,亦攻亦守,终成和局。

根据规定,加赛快棋,孟辰先手终于战胜赖理兄。

第18届世界象棋锦标赛首次在美国举行,对象棋在国际的进一步推广,有着重大意义。

美国象棋协会主席兼北美象棋协会主席郑勤霖担任本届世界象棋锦标赛组委会主席。

作为东道主的美国代表队,派出总代表郑勤霖,领队古奇天,教练沈浩,男棋手黎英豪、武冕、梅俊海、欧里瓦.特斯尔,女棋手龚勤,少年棋手胡佰恒、武家玮、王黄嘉欣、刘近山、戴子轩等盛大阵容,创美国队历届人数最多纪录。

据报道,决赛当日的全场焦点,是男子组争夺冠亚军的决战,由预赛第一的孟辰,对垒预赛第二的赖理兄。

双方预赛时曾交手,激战百多会合打成平手。甲组联赛有过一局,赖理兄执先取胜。此番移师新战场,冲击世界冠军宝座,意义非凡。

如孟辰胜,则成为首位未获全国冠军而先获世界冠军的棋手。如赖理兄赢,将是首个非中国籍的世界冠军。

赛前抽签,赖理兄抽得先手,执红先行。

决战进行的同时,其他各台第九轮也同步进行。新加坡队吴宗翰取得季军,中国台北队葛振衣第四,中国香港队黄学谦第五,马来西亚队黎德志第六,英国队田菏第七,新加坡队刘亿豪第八。

新加坡队取得男子团体冠军,越南队亚军,马来西亚队季军。

决赛赖理兄红棋摆出中炮阵,来势汹汹,孟辰应以起左马,布局双方中炮过河车对屏风马左马盘河横车。这个阵法,赖理兄多有习弈,红方布局占先,兑换一车后,红渡过七路兵,黑冲过7路卒。

两边进入中局对杀,互攻当中,黑方上士打车、下士又打车,依例需要变招,孟辰长考之后,非常勇猛,第五十二手强行挥马踩相,弃马进攻,势在必得。赖理兄素以攻杀闻名。此时黑不兑炮,而是弃子,红夺子之后,赖理兄十分凶悍,以攻对攻,凭借多子之势,眼看着化解对方攻势,逼迫黑棋简化,净多一大子形成胜利在望。

但残局阶段,赖理兄没有抓住,孟辰不再给赖理兄任何机会,黑横过河卒撞掉红边兵,放弃底象,棋局转入马低兵光帅对高卒双士,已为必和。双方鏖战214手,黑将5平4,老将顺利出来,赖理兄只能叹息一声,停钟握手和棋,慢棋孟辰依靠强大的中后盘力量和坚韧的意志,在少一子的形势下打成和棋。

再加赛快棋,孟辰换先执红,摆出起马阵,赖理兄应以挺3卒,布局第二步红上右边马、黑起右正马。

双方各自布子,几个回合下来,红右侧的边马,轰然冲起边兵,之后又弃掉三路兵,从边线杀出了一条血路。最终,在快棋中,赖理兄面对不利局面,压力倍增,超时告负。

孟辰勇夺2023年第十八届美国休斯敦世界象棋锦标赛个人冠军,成为继吕钦、赵国荣、徐天红、许银川、赵鑫鑫、蒋川、王天一、郑惟桐、徐超之后,中国第十位世界棋王。

孟辰开创一个新的传奇,在天下英雄拼杀这么激烈的时代,他从业余棋手起家,拿到大师,拼到特级大师,一直打到世界冠军,短时间内达到个人成就的超级高峰。

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Source: Go to Qipu88

Friday, November 24, 2023

马来西亚象棋宿将杯赛

2023 Malaysia National Xiangqi Veteran Cup (Open)

马来西亚全国象棋宿将杯公开赛(50岁或以上)

比赛日期:2023年12月2日 - 3日(星期六 - 星期日)

比赛地点:雪隆精武体育馆,Stadium Chinwoo SEL & KL

主办单位:马来西亚象棋总会

主要赞助:青年及体育部

协办单位:吉隆坡象棋公会,雪隆精武体育会智育部

参赛资格:凡年龄在50岁或以上,只限⻢来西亚公⺠,性别不限

比赛棋规:世界象棋规则

比赛用时:采用电子棋钟;每方每局25分钟,每步加5秒,无需记录

比赛轮次:采用积分编排结合决赛赛制(7+1),共8轮(1局制)

优胜奖励:第一名:RM3,000,第二名:RM2,000,第三名:RM1,000,第四名:RM800,第五名至第二十五名也有奖

附加奖励:最具运动精神奖三份

参赛名额:比赛总人数定为100位, 名额有限, 先到先得

报名办法:免费报名

住宿方式:棋手自理,(主办单位将给予每位棋手部份住宿津贴)

报名联系:石健伟 016-3029331,王伟麟 017-8866156

闭幕晚宴:12月3日晚上7时,在碧华楼宴会厅 (Maba House Jalan Hang Jebat)

报名截止:2023年11月26日(星期日)

比赛日程: 12月2日(星期六)0900时报到,1030时比赛第一轮,1200时比赛第二轮,1330时午餐

1430时举行开幕仪式。1530时比赛第三轮,1700时比赛第四轮

12月3日(星期日)1000时比赛第五轮,1130时比赛第六轮,1300时午餐

1400时比赛第七轮,1530时比赛第八轮,1900闭幕晚宴、文娱表演及颁奖典礼

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Source: Go to 马来西亚象棋总会

Wednesday, November 22, 2023

业余棋手王廓一战成名

Four days ago, Jilin's player Wang Kuo(王廓), like many other players who came to the Men's Individual Championship Tournament, hoped to play well and get at least a Xiangqi Master's title thus fulfilling their long-cherished wishes. And four days later, on January 15, Wang Kuo defeated Grandmaster Zhao Xinxin(赵鑫鑫)in the play-offs, and beyond all expectation, stood on the podium to receive the 21st Individual Championship title and the coveted Xiangqi King trophy.

Wang Kuo the new Champion

The situation was best described as "unprecedented". Years ago, Tao Hanming(陶汉明)had won the Championship as an amateur player, and now Wang Kuo doing the same, both of them are from around the mysterious area of Changbai Mountain(长白山).

Born in Changchun(长春)in 1990's, he was winning competitions in his age group as a child, he was taught by master player Liang Wenbin(梁文斌)early on. After graduating from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics in 2016, he left the dazzling city of Shanghai and returned to his hometown, where he works in the Revenue/Judicial Services.

Some fans thought that the outcome of the Championship was a shocking upset, but in fact, it was not an upset, life rewards those who worked hard, he has been working tirelessly in a way that you can hardly imagined. Wang Kuo's reputation came out of the Northeast. In 2017, in the 13th National Sport Games Men's Open preliminaries, with Zhao Panwei, Sun Xinhao, Yao Hongxin, Ren Gang and other super strong players competing, Wang Kuo won with four wins and three draws to top them all, fans everywhere exclaimed: It turns out that Jilin still has such exciting masters!

In 2019, in the men's group of the 4th National Mind Games Open, he won 2nd place with 7 wins and 1 loss, and in 2020, he won sixth place in the qualifiers of the Chess League, the top spot of the "Airport Shuangliu Cup" Amateur Chess King Finals, with the title of "Amateur Chess King".

From amateur to Grandmaster around 30 days

It took only about some 30 more days for Wang Kuo to take the National Individual Championship trophy, he was simply superb, the social media have exploded, messages of congratulations, poetry, personal emotions, all kinds of talents emerged on the papers and screens endlessly.

Wang Kuo's phone at home was also ringing non-stop, aunts and uncles, cousins and nephews, friends and relatives, the leading officials of the Jilin Chess Academy all came to congratulate one by one, once the Xiangqi Crown was put up on him, he was worth a hundred folds. Let's calmly look back at Wang Kuo's promotion achievement in the Championship competition.

According to the rules, the 59 players in Group B premilinaries must reach the top 35 places to enter Group A, to qualify for the Championship tournament proper. In group B, Wang Kuo met the strong master Cao Yanlei(曹岩磊), and was beaten as the Black's side. It was also the only game he lost in the entire tournament. Wang Kuo, losing the first game, changed his strategy, played steadily, drew four games and won two in the end, defeating Hubei's Liu Zongze(刘宗泽)and Shanxi's Zhou Jun(周军)respectively, joining the last batch of the promoted to Group A.

In Group A the single-defeat elimination system was adopted, in the 64 into 32, and the 32 into 16 knock-out games, Wang Kuo eliminated Hangzhou's Du Chenhao(杜晨昊)and Shanghai's Zhao Wei(赵玮)respectively, and successfully promoted to the rank of Xiangqi Master. After playing the game for so many years, once ranked as a Master, generally it is the biggest dream of every amateur chess player, there is nothing happier than that.

Wang Kuo was like a top magician now, the majority of amateur players after gaining the top 16 spot, usually they would most likely be eliminated well before the quarterfinals.

In the quarterfinals, Wang Kuo knocked down Xiangqi Master Wang Hao(王昊), and people mostly paying attention to players such as Hong(洪), Zhao(赵), Zheng(郑)and others, and no one noticed the sharp sword that was secretly drawn out.

The semi-finals were composed of Zhao Xinxin, Hong Zhi, Zheng Weitong, and Wang Kuo, many people laugh when they see this lineup, hey, the three chess kings bringing out a bronze one, and the final must be either Zheng Weitong vs Zhao Xinxin, or Zheng Weitong vs Hong Zhi, one of the three "n crowns" is going to be upgraded to n+1 Champion.

Wang Kuo shocked the Xiangqi world

After a few hours, they couldn't laugh anymore, because Wang Kuo defeated Zheng Weitong with an extremely exquisite 3-Rooks versus Guards ending. It was only at this moment that the fans really turned their attention to this amateur chess player who had just been promoted to Xiangqi Master, what was the real reason? So powerful? So incredible?

Despite this, public opinion generally believed that Zhao Xinxin had a better chance of winning the Championship in the Final.

At half past eight in the morning, the Final began watched by tens of millions of Xiangqi fans.

In the first game with normal timing, both sides were relatively conservative, they made tentative and probing moves, did not dare to make any trouble, they quickly tried their best to make it a draw.

In the second game of ten minutes of rapid chess, Zhao Xinxin having the first move, he opened with his most convenient weapon "Pawns confrontation turned into Cannon behind the Pawn" formation, Wang Kuo's left-side Cannon crossed the river to blockade the opponent's Rook, and the right wing's Knight moving sideways allowing the Rook emerged out from the 3rd file. Xinxin seeing this, hurriedly rushed the 8th file Rook upward taking control of the river front line.

How to open up the 3rd file's Rook was the most important topic for Black at present, and Wang Kuo came up with the ruthless method of first sacrificing the 7th file Pawn by moving it across the river, then moved the 2nd file Cannon 2 steps back, while vaguely aiming at Red's 7th file. On move 17th, Xinxin's Rook attacked the undefended Knight. Wang Kuo drew out his concealed dagger, and the Cannon was moved from the 4th file into the 3rd file, sacrificing a whole Knight in order to launch the attack!

Wang Kuo, a player who had not even sat on the master's stool long enough, actually dared to sacrificed a piece in the opening stage against Xinxin, a number one player of attack, this called for great courage, a courage not seen on everyday indeed.

After the Red's Rook took the Knight, the Black's Cannon moved to 1st file, the double Rook fire power fiercely attacked Red's weakened left wing bottom rank, although Xinxin had piece majority, there were still problems in holding the situation, so he had to withdraw more pieces back for the defense, and when Black's Rook, Knight and Cannon fire power gathered to cross the river to launch the final assault, the Red's left wing Knight defence arrived in time, establishing communication with the river patrol Rook, exchanging and simplifying pieces, thus achieving a drawn situation.

A 5 minutes blitz game settled it all

In the third game, a terrifying five-minute versus five-minute blitz time began. Wang Kuo deployed the formation with Flying Elephant, Zhao Xinxin responded with the Crossed-Palace Cannon, and the two sides moved extremely quickly in the opening stage, the lightning moves hardly allowed fans to see all the tricks. Xinxin knocked out the Pawn with the Central Cannon, Red took the opportunity to advance the 9th file Rook to defend the Pawn's rank, bringing out the right wing Rook quickly. Black's advantage was to have a Pawn crossing the River, but to what extent can the role of this advanced Pawn be realized? The fact was that none at all, because Wang Kuo pounced extremely fast in the middle game stage with two Rooks and two Knights, and on the 20th move, Red played the 3rd file Knight to 1st file, threatening check with the Knight, combined with a powerful attack with the rib Cannon and Rook.

At this critical survival moment, Black's was under extreme pressure, quickened its own defeat by playing the Cannon from the 5th file into the 6th file, which was like injecting a lethal poison into the already bad situation, and Red's 2nd file Rook moved up one step, followed by a Knight check, followed by another Rook's attacking move, piling up more fire power, sending with a cool song to Xinxin...

At this point, the 2020 Jiucheng Cup(九城杯)National Chess Individual Championship was over, and the amateur chess king Wang Kuo officially became the twenty-first Champion, Zhao Xinxin the runner-up, and Hong Zhi the third runner-up.

Sixty years ago, fifteen-year-old Hu Ronghua participated in the individual competition for the first time, and no one would have thought that he would be able to win the championship from Grandmaster Yang Guanlin. Sixty years later, no one could have imagined that Wang Kuo, who was started as an amateur, would become the new chess king in the end, and history would repeat itself, amazingly!

Wang Kuo created his own legend, created the legend of Jilin, and also created a legend of the modern times, a new era of Xiangqi by amateur players to the Hall of The Great, he echoed with the person who shouted "the noble and prince will come from no difference and no distinction background" more than 2,000 years ago, and became a disciple of a different generation. From now on, Xiangqi has truely entered a period where professional and amateur players contested alike on one and same platform, which in turn has also inspired more amateur Xiangqi players to move forward towards their own great dream!

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Source : 百度.百家号
发布者:象棋微学堂
Dated: 2021-01-19

Tuesday, November 14, 2023

东西方象棋相似亦相通

by Huang Shaolong (formerly Professor of Nankai University)

Huang Shaolong on the ideal of Xiangqi

I often went to the Lingnan Cultural Relics Museum(岭南文物宫)to watch Xiangqi exhibitions, the large board of demonstration was two-sided, one for Xiangqi and the other for Chess. The audience sometimes attended from one side and then moved to the other side, in this way both games were equally promoted, and that was how I got interested in Chess. In Chess the moves of Rook and Knight are quite similar to Xiangqi, and there are also many similarities in the principles of strategy and tactics, so it is easy to learn and be proficient.

At that time, I have read in the newspapers that Xie Xiaxun(谢侠逊)was also good at Chess and he vigorously advocated it. He once defeated the British champion in a multinational invitational tournament held in Guangzhou and won the championship, causing a great sensation. I was very encouraged by this and wanted to find out about the game for a trial.

It just happened that Tu Jingming(屠景明), a famous Xiangqi player in Shanghai, was the chief editor of the Chess column of Xinmin Evening News(新民晚报), and I subscribed to it in order to learn some basic Openings. In 1953, when the first Chess tournament was held in Guangzhou, I took part but was defeated in the round-robin stage by Xi Quan(洗权), but later I won the championship by defeating him in the final.

Xi afterwards participated in the 1958 National Chess Tournament and finished third. At that time, there was also Gao Zhi, a famous Chess player in Guangzhou. I played against him and won. He had represented Guangzhou in the 1956 National Chess Exhibition Tournament. Later, both Xiquan and Gao Zhi moved to Hong Kong, and the two represented Hong Kong in the World Olympiad Chess Championship in 1966.

In 1955, Shanghai players He Shun'an(何顺安)and Tu Jingming visited Guangzhou to compete in Guangzhou-Shanghai Xiangqi challenge matches. On March 25th, the tournament got a day off, and the Guangzhou Cultural Park(广州文化公园)invited Tu Jingming to give me a public performance in Chess. Tu Jingming was good at both Xiangqi and Chess. The fans were attracted to our challenge match.

Tu got the first move and maintained his initiative, broke through my defensive formation, forcing my King to exposure. I waited patiently for a surprise counter-attack. Sure enough, I surprised him and won a piece, so that the two sides entered a state of intense battle.

At this stage it suddenly rained heavily, and the open-air exhibition was suspended, the friendly game was stopped and no longer continued.

Looking back now, although I didn't play Chess later, my study of it once broadened my horizons and allowed me to learn from the excellent cultures of other countries, and the learning and practice was to the benefit of Xiangqi. For example, theories such as the importance of center and analysis of the opening game inspired me to write "The Theory of Xiangqi Openings". In particular, I was very interested in the training methods of the Chess players, and found that their education levels were relatively high. For example, the Soviet chess player Botvinnik was a world champion and at the same time, a doctor of science and technology, and he later participated in the development of computer chess. The Soviet Union also had two other world champions, Tal and Karpov, they graduated from the University journalism and economics faculties respectively. Another example was the earlier world champion Lasker, a German philosopher and mathematician who served as Professor at the prestigious University of Cambridge and the University of Berlin. In the UK, Chess Master Levy was a Professor of computer science at the University of Edinburgh. In the Netherlands, the world champion Euwe was a doctor of mathematics. In the United States, Master Hestie was a Professor and had served as vice president of the American Chess Association, among other things. The above facts were thought-provoking and have a great influence on my choice of life path.

On the other hand, the Chinese Xiangqi talented players' situation was quite different. The famous Seven Provinces Xiangqi King(七省棋王),Four Grand Tian Wangs(四大天王),Three Phoenix of East Guangdong(粤东三凤), Three Greats of North China(华北三杰),they all played at a high standard, but their culture levels were not high enough, their finance were also not up to standard, these of course were caused by the conditions of the old society. In the new society, things were improved, however the cultural level have yet to be improved. After the opening of the society, some players got chances into the University, that's a good affair, but basically much needed to be done to improve the whole situation.

Players should play well to win tournaments and championships, but improving players' culture is indispensable. Because when the Xiangqi skills and experience reached a certain level, it is necessary to improve the theoretical level, on the one hand, to summarize the players own practical experience, and on the other hand, to learn from the theoretical achievements of other masters, all of which required corresponding educational accomplishment. Otherwise, the strength of the players' game may stagnate.

After reaching the master level, players not only need to continue to improve their knowledge and skills, but also need to make contributions to the advancement of the game in many aspects, as the initial knowledge of Xiangqi skills is not enough. The improvement of educational level means to enhance one's understanding of science, art, and literature, deepen one's cultural accomplishment, and enable oneself to achieve a more comprehensive development. Otherwise, it is not in line with the requirements of modern time. Limited to just tournaments and competitions is too narrow a world.

Looking back at the Tang and Song dynasties, chess was listed as one of the four major arts along with the qin, calligraphy and painting, and it was a compulsory course for cultural people. The invention of Xiangqi originated from the nurturing of the culture of Yixue(易学)learning, and its fundamental attribute is culture. Therefore, it is only natural that Xiangqi masters should have corresponding cultural accomplishments, especially in today's modern society in the 21st century.

Amateur Xiangqi players should pay more attention to receiving cultural education, and in the knowledge-based economy society, high education can usually obtain a higher economic and social status, lay the foundation for participating in amateur chess activities, and can contribute to supporting the cause of chess.

On a deeper level, improving culture is not only a matter for the players themselves, but also a need to improve the social status of the game. Since the development of the four ancient arts, there have been conservatories, art academies and other institutions of higher learning, which have cultivated musicians, calligraphers and painters with high cultural status in society and are respected by people. The state does not run a Xiangqi academy, and the Xiangqi master is only an idol in the minds of the fans, and therefore the influence in society is much smaller. In the final analysis, it is because the cultural quality of the people in the Xiangqi world is not high and they have not been able to keep pace with the times.

When I was a teenager, I witnessed the hardships of the older generation of Xiangqi players, observed the cultural gap between domestic and foreign chess players, realized the importance of culture to general players, and gave birth to the ideal of taking into account both the skill in the game and the academic learning, that is, young people should practice chess on the one hand, and learn culture on the other hand, which is an ideal model for the growth of Xiangqi players in the new era.

Requiring a higher game skill and a higher level of education, can that both be taken into account? The answer is yes, the Chess players we mentioned above are living examples, why can't we do it? The key is the selection and training system. At that time, I only had vague ideals, and it was still unknown whether I could achieve them, as all depending on the objective environment, personal efforts and opportunities. Decades later, I finally achieved this dream and became a Xiangqi Master and a university Professor. Moreover, I have also teached and cultivated some students who are both national first-class Xiangqi players and university PhD, which shows that the path of excellence in Xiangqi and academic study is feasible.

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Source: 个人图书馆
发布者:象棋残局解析
Dated: 2023-02-24