International Go Federation facts for kids
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| Formation | March 18, 1982 |
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| Type | Sports federation |
| Headquarters | Tokyo, Japan |
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Membership
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List of Go organizations |
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Official language
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English |
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President
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Yōkō Takemiya |
The International Go Federation (IGF) is a group that brings together all the different national Go clubs and organizations from around the world. It helps connect people who love the game of Go from many different countries.
Contents
What the IGF Does
The IGF works to make the game of Go popular everywhere. It also helps build friendly relationships among its members. The federation tries to make Go more organized around the world.
Here are some of the main things the IGF does:
- It organizes big events like the World Amateur Go Championship. It also helps with other international Go tournaments.
- The IGF shares the latest news about Go activities worldwide. They do this through newsletters or on their website.
- They also work on other projects to help Go grow internationally.
IGF Rules and Values
The IGF is a group that does not get involved in politics or religion. It focuses only on the game of Go. The federation always tries to make sure that all players compete fairly.
How the IGF Started
The Nihon Ki-in, which is the Japan Go Association, held the first World Go Amateur Championship in Japan in 1979. Many of the best Go players and leaders from national Go groups attended this event. It was a big success!
Because of this success, the International Go Federation was officially started on March 18, 1982. Shizuo Asada was the first president, and there were 29 founding members.
Later, on April 7, 2006, the IGF joined the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF). The IGF also helped start the IMSA (International Mind Sports Association).
The IGF organizes the World Amateur Go Championship every year. This event brings together players from over 65 countries.
Major Go Tournaments
The IGF helps organize or supports many important Go tournaments. These events bring players from all over the world together to compete.
- List of professional Go tournaments
- World Amateur Go Championship
- International Amateur Pair Go Championship
- International Amateur Baduk Championship
- World Youth Go Championship
- European Go Championship
- European Pair Go Championship
- Asian Go Championship
- Pan American Go Championship
- Ibero American Go Championship
Countries and Groups in the IGF
As of December 2017, the IGF had 77 member nations. These included 39 countries in Europe, 18 in Asia, 15 in the Americas, 3 in Africa, and 2 in Oceania.
By 2023, the IGF still had 77 member nations. Here is a breakdown by region:
- 39 in Europe: ARM, AUT, AZE, BLR, BEL, BIH, BUL, CRO, CYP, CZE, DEN, FIN, FRA, GEO, GER, HUN, ISL, IRL, ISR, ITA, KAZ, LAT, LTU, LUX, NED, NOR, POL, POR, ROU, RUS, SRB, SVK, SLO, ESP, SWE, SUI, TUR, UKR, GBR
- 18 in Asia: BRU, CHN, TPE, HKG, IND, INA, IRI, JPN, MAC, MAS, MGL, NEP, PRK, PHI, SIN, KOR, THA, VIE
- 15 in Americas: ARG, BRA, CAN, CHI, COL, CRC, CUB, ECU, GUA, MEX, PAN, PER, URU, USA, VEN
- 3 in Africa: MAD, MAR, RSA
- 2 in Oceania: AUS, NZL
The IGF also has five special "Association Members." These groups cover multiple countries or have a specific focus:
- World Pair Go Association
- Federación Iberoamericana de Go
- European Go Federation
- Ing Changk Wei-Chi Education Foundation
- Asian Go Federation
Leaders of the IGF
The International Go Federation has had several presidents since it began. These leaders help guide the organization and promote Go around the world.
- Shizuo Asada: A professional Go player and the first president of the IGF, from 1982 to 1997.
- Fumio Watanabe: Served as president from 1997 to 2001.
- Matsuo Toshimitsu: Was president from 2001 to 2004.
- Masao Kato: A professional 9-dan Go player, he was president from 2004 to 2005.
- Norio Kudo: Another professional 9-dan Go player, he led the IGF from 2005 to 2007.
- Hiromu Okabe: He was the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Nihon Ki-in and President of the Denso Corporation. He served from 2007 to 2009.
- Otake Hideo: Also Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Nihon Ki-in, he was president from 2009 to 2010.
- Chang Zhenming: Vice-chairman and President of CITIC Group, he was president from 2010 to 2012.
- Koichiro Matsuura: He was President of the World Pair Go Association and a former Director General of UNESCO. He served from 2012 to 2014.
- Seokhyun Hong: Chairman of the Korea Baduk Association and President of the Joongang Media Network, he was president from 2014 to 2016.
- Chang Zhenming: He returned as President of CITIC Group and has been the IGF president since June 4, 2016.
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