Before the opening of one of the eight major shogi titles, the Kiohsen, Sota Fujii five crowns (20), the youngest ever to win the six crowns, and Meiji Watanabe, the title holder aiming for the 11th consecutive victory of the Kiohsen. Crown (38) spoke of his enthusiasm.

The "Kioh Battle" began on the 5th, and at the hotel in Nagano City, where the first game was held, the challenger Fujii Gokan and Watanabe Nikan, who have the title, performed an "inspection" to check the game room.



The match between the two was the first since the "Osho Battle" in which Fujii five crowns won the title in February last year, and after the "Kenbun", the two faced a pre-opening press conference.



Fujii Gokan currently holds five titles: Ryuo, Throne, Eio, Osho, and Kisei, and since last month, he has been competing against Yoshiharu Hanyu, 9th dan (52), in the seventh match to defend the title of "Osho." increase.



If he maintains the five crowns and wins this "Kiosen", he will break the youngest record of "six crowns" achieved by Hanyu 9th Dan for the first time in 29 years.

Fujii's five crowns said, "Watanabe's two crowns give me the impression that he has a precise strategy, and he has a track record in the Kioh match. I want to be able to put out a good performance while fighting in parallel with the battle," he said enthusiastically.

On the other hand, Watanabe has been defending his title since winning the Kiohsen for the first time 10 years ago, and this time it will be his 11th consecutive victory.



Watanabe's two crowns said, "Fujii's five crowns are getting worse year by year, and they are inevitably required to take measures that are different from other opponents. I didn't have a good point in the previous match, so this time I will try a little better shogi. I want to fight with the feeling of showing," he said of his ambition.



The schedule for the 5th game of the "Kioh Battle" will be set for next month, and the first to win three wins will win the title.



The first game will start at 9 am on the 5th, and it is expected that the winner will be decided in the afternoon.