The First Japan-China Go Exchange.
From April 2nd to April 19th on of the most important events in 20th Century go took place - the first Japan-China Go Exchange.
The Chinese team shocked the Japanese, with half of them scoring winning records. Chen Zude, one of the founders of Chinese professional go, and Wang Runan, longtime go leader were included on the team.
Nie Weiping (left) and Kong Xiangming (right).
But the stars of the teams were Nie Weiping, the captain, and Kong Xiangming, the sole female player. Nie finished with a 6-1 record beating top players, including Ishida Hon'inbō and Fujisawa Tengen. His only defeat was by two points to Hashimoto Shōji 9d. Meanwhile, Kong did one better, finishing with a 7-0 record dispatching virtually all of the top Japanese women players.
The finals of the Jūdan tournament began on April 8th. Titleholder Rin Kaihō defeated the challenger Katō Masao 8d. Later in the month, on the 29th, Katō evened the score.
From April 10th to 12th, the British Go Congress took place. Japanese visitor M. Nashiwa 5d managed to win the championship and skip the last round, since his 6-0 mark was unreachable. Charles Matthews 1k finished 5-2 and won the 1d/1k section. The Cambridge Wanderers won the team tournament.
On April 12th, Ōtake Hideo scored a win to even the Gosei title final. Mirroring his effort above, challenger Katō went ahead 2-1 with a victory on the 21st.
Kobayashi Chizu (right) and Honda Sachiko (left) play in the Women's Hon'inbō.
Finally, on April 14th, Kobayashi Chizu 3d (on the right above) was an upset winner over four time winner Honda Sachiko 5d, winning the Women's Hon'inbō in two straight games.
Photos from Kidō Yearbook.