Hiroe Nakai facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hiroe Nakai
Nakai in 2009
Native name	中井広恵
Born	(1969-06-24) June 24, 1969 (age 56)
Hometown	Wakkanai, Hokkaido
Career
Achieved professional status	April 1, 1981(1981-04-01) (aged 11)
Badge Number	JSA W-7 LPSA W-7
Rank	Women's 6-dan
Teacher	Yūji Sase [ja] (9-dan)
Lifetime titles	Queen Meijin
Major titles won	19
Tournaments won	12

Hiroe Nakai (中井 広恵, Nakai Hiroe) (born June 24, 1969, in Wakkanai, Hokkaido) is a Japanese women's professional shogi player. She holds the rank of 6-dan, which is a high level in shogi. Throughout her career, she has won 19 major titles, making her one of the most successful women in shogi. She has also earned the special lifetime title of Queen Meijin.

Nakai made history several times. She was the first woman professional to defeat a regular male shogi professional in an official game. She was also the first woman professional to win against a Class A professional (a very strong player) and the first to win a game in the NHK Cup TV Shogi Tournament.

Nakai also served as a leader for the Ladies Professional Shogi-player's Association of Japan (LPSA).

Early Life and Shogi Journey

Hiroe Nakai started playing shogi when she was only 4 years old. Shogi is a Japanese board game similar to chess. When she was 11, in 1981, she came in second place in a big tournament for elementary school students.

In 1983, she joined the Japan Shogi Association's training school for future professionals. She reached the rank of 2-kyū there before leaving in 1990.

Becoming a Women's Shogi Professional

Nakai officially became a women's professional 2-kyū in April 1981, when she was just 11 years old. She was taught by Yūji Satō [ja].

In 1993, Nakai achieved something amazing. She became the first woman professional to beat a regular male professional player in an official game. She won against Shūichi Ikeda [ja] in a Ryūō tournament game.

Nakai was only 16 when she won her first major title in 1985. She defeated the current Women's Meijin Naoko Hayashiba to claim the title. The next year, she successfully defended her title against a new challenger.

In 2003, Nakai made history again by becoming the first woman professional to win a game in the NHK Cup TV Shogi Tournament. She won two games in that tournament, including one against Teruichi Aono, who was a top-ranked Class A player at the time. She is still the only woman professional to have won an NHK Cup game.

Nakai continued to set records for wins. In April 2009, she became the first woman professional to win 500 official games. Then, in January 2015, she reached 600 official wins.

In August 2010, Nakai set a new record for the most consecutive wins by a woman professional. She won her nineteenth game in a row by defeating Sayuri Honda.

In October 2020, at 51 years old, Nakai became the oldest challenger for a women's major title. She won a tournament to earn the right to play for the 28th Kurashiki Tōka Cup. This was her first major title match in 16 years. Although she lost the final match, her achievement was still remarkable.

Promotion Ranks

Nakai has moved up through the shogi ranks as follows:

• 2-kyū: April 1, 1981
• 1-dan: March 10, 1983
• 2-dan: April 1, 1983
• 3-dan: April 1, 1986
• 4-dan: April 1, 1989
• 5-dan: April 1, 1992
• 6-dan: November 25, 2002

All these ranks are for women's professional shogi players.

Major Titles and Championships

Nakai has played in major title matches 44 times and has won 19 titles in total. She has won the Women's Meijin title nine times, earning her the special title of Queen Meijin. She has also won the Women's Ōshō [ja] title four times, the Women's Ōi [ja] title three times, and the Kurashiki Tōka Cup three times. Besides these major titles, Nakai has won 17 other shogi championships.

Major Titles Won

Other Championships Won

Note: Tournaments marked with an asterisk (*) are no longer held or are currently paused.

Awards and Recognition

Nakai has received many awards from the Japan Shogi Association and other groups. These awards recognize her achievements in shogi and her contributions to Japanese society.

Annual Shogi Awards

• 13th Annual Awards (April 1985–March 1986): Women's Professional Award
• 14th Annual Awards (April 1986–March 1987): Women's Professional Award
• 16th Annual Awards (April 1988–March 1989): Women's Professional Award
• 20th Annual Awards (April 1992–March 1993): Women's Professional Award
• 27th Annual Awards (April 1999–March 2000): Women's Professional Award
• 29th Annual Awards (April 2001–March 2002): Women's Professional of the Year
• 30th Annual Awards (April 2002–March 2003): Women's Professional of the Year
• 31st Annual Awards (April 2003–March 2004): Women's Professional Award
• 22nd Annual Awards (April 2004–March 2005): Women's Professional Award
• 38th Annual Awards (April 2010–March 2011): Women's Professional Most Games Played
• 40th Annual Awards (April 2012–March 2012): Women's Professional Most Games Played

Other Awards

• 1986, February: Wakkanai, Hokkaido Meritorious Citizen Award

LPSA Leadership Role

In 2007, when The Ladies Professional Shogi-player's Association of Japan (LPSA) was created, Nakai was chosen to be its first leader. She served in this important role until 2010.

Personal Life

Hiroe Nakai is married to Yoshiyuki Ueyama [ja], who is a retired shogi professional. They have three daughters. Nakai also served on the Warabi, Saitama board of education from 2003 to 2015. In May 2016, she was named a "Warabi City PR Ambassador."

Images for kids

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  Nakai in February 2013

• 

  Nakai at the European/World Open Shogi Championships in July 2013

See also

In Spanish: Hiroe Nakai para niños