HOW DOES THE RICOH CHAMPIONSHIP WORK?
This unique event in the pro scene has been taken over from the amateur world, where it is quickly increasing in popularity, acquiring a social atmosphere rather similar to that of bridge and whist drives in the west. It is sponsored by Ricoh Co. Ltd., office automation manufacturers, with support from the Yomiuri Shimbun under the umbrella of the Japan Pair Go Association, which is the main force in the amateur world. The event is also supported by the Nihon Ki-in, the Kansai Ki-in, the magazine Go Weekly (Shukan Go). Since 1999 games are also being broadcast on the IGS go server. Pictures of current participants can be found at http://www.joy.ne.jp/RICOH. Top prize is nominally 5 million yen, but at least part is given to charity (in Term 1, 3 million yen was given to help spread go in schools and the rest to the find for the Hanshin earthquake). The event is more a chance for the public to see top pros in action. In Term1, 800 members of the public paid to join the players in Tokyo’
