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 Post subject: Shiratori Sumiko RIP
Post #1 Posted: Sun Dec 04, 2022 3:37 am 
Oza

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Shiratori Sumiko died on 10 November 2022 as the oldest living pro. She was born on 6 January 1919 in Hamamatsu but lived in Shanghai from 1937 to 1945.

She became a pro at the Nihon Ki-in's Tokyo branch in 1949, having been a pupil of Masubuchi Tatsuko from 1931. This was obviously a lean time for go professionals, and various factions evolved. Fujisawa Kuranosuke 8-dan (= Hosai) founded the Reimeikai (Dawn Club) for strong players, and it had a junior partner, the Gyopukai - Dawn Wind Club for 1-dans and 2-dans. 'Dawn' referred to the attempts of younger players to rid go of its feudalistic practices, so as to see in a new age. Shiratori joined the Gyopukai in 1950. Another member will be familiar to western readers - Kageyama Toshiro of "Fundamentals of Go" fame. Shiratori became 2-dan that same year and progressed steadily to 3-dan in 1953. She married the president of the Kitakyushu Chamber of Commerce and so took the name Kimura Sumiko. Inevitably there was a long hiatus before she became 4-dan, in 1981. In 1971, her husband died, and so in the following year she resumed tournament play, reverting to her maiden name.

In this period, she also appeared in the Japan-China Go Exchanges, naturally enough given her Chinese experiences. One of her victims was Kong Xiangming, who later became the world's top player for a while. I later became a victim of Kong (on 4 stones) at the Covent Garden Go Club in London, home of the famous molasses ko game in which my late GoGoD colleague T Mark Hall featured. There I also met Sugiuchi Kazuko 8-dan for the first time. I mention this because she is still playing tournament go at the age of 95, so has the record for longevity in another sense (though her career too was interrupted for about 10 years while she raised a family).

Shiratori retired again in 1988 (with the usual retirement promotion to 5-dan) but continued teaching in Yamanashi City. She remained in touch with go and was a guest at Game 7 of the 41st Meijin title match (where Takao beat Iyama), which took place in Yamanashi. She even took part in the press-room analysis with O Meien.

Her career record was a respectable 186-253-6 (42.5%). The GoGoD database has over 30 of her games. She has been made a posthumous 6-dan. (For comparison, Mrs Sugiuchi's career record thus far is 632-941-6 = 40.2%; her record this year is 2-8.)


This post by John Fairbairn was liked by 2 people: bobmcg, Elom0
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 Post subject: Re: Shiratori Sumiko RIP
Post #2 Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2022 5:27 pm 
Dies in gote

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I had the privilege of playing a one-to-one (teaching) game with Shiratori Sensei at an early U. S. Go Congress, possibly the 4th one in Berkeley, California. She was there unofficially, as a tourist; Nakayama Sensei introduced me and she offered a game. I remember her as kind and friendly and she courteously praised my rather clumsy go. Sorry she in gone.


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