The second station of the Honinbo War, one of the seven major titles of Go, started on the 24th and is being held for the first time at the rugby field in Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture.
At the Kumagaya Rugby Stadium in Kumagaya City, there is a match between Yuta Iyama's four crowns, who will win the title 11 consecutive titles, and Ryo Ichiriki Kisei, the second station of the seventh game of the 77th Honinbo match.
The 24th started at 9 am, and Kisei Ichiriki, who was the first player, hit a black stone, and after a while, the four crowns of Iyama hit a white stone.
The Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, where the game is held, was one of the venues for the Rugby World Cup three years ago, and the first game of Go was held in an attempt to promote it as a rugby town.
The venue is a special room used by the imperial family on the 4th floor of the main stand to watch the game, and this time 12 tatami mats were laid out so that they could play the game.
Mayor Tetsuya Kobayashi of Kumagaya said, "I am very grateful that it is a collaboration between sports and culture that you can fight the highest peak of Go in a place where you can feel the legacy of the World Cup."
The second station of the Honinbo War will be held on the 25th.