Hu Ronghua

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Hu Ronghua (b.1945), a native of Shanghai, is considered to be the all-time strongest player of Xiangqi, or Chinese Chess.

His reputation is legendary: he first won the Chinese national championship in 1960 at age 15. At the time, many commentators thought it was an accident that such a young person won the national title. However, he went on to win the next ten consecutive national championships in the ensuing years.

In the period from 1960 to 1979, Hu Ronghua won the championship a total of 13 times, including his 10-win streak. In the 1980s, he won the national championship in 1983 and 1985. By the mid 1990s, people thought that he was past his prime, and that younger generations of top players would eventually replace him. However, in a shocking victory, he won yet again in 1997.

Thus, Hu Ronghua holds the record for the greatest number of national titles (16), the youngest champion (age 15 in 1960), and the oldest champion (age 52 in 1997) in the history of Xiangqi.