Hideyuki Sakai

Hideyuki Sakai
Full name Hideyuki Sakai
Kanji 坂井秀至
Born April 23, 1973 (1973-04-23) (age 38)
Sanda, Hyōgo, Japan
Residence Osaka, Japan
Turned pro 2000
Rank 7 dan
Affiliation Kansai Ki-in

Hideyuki Sakai (坂井秀至 Sakai Hideyuki?, born April 23, 1973) is a professional Go player.

Biography

Before becoming a professional, Sakai was majoring in medical science at Kyoto University. For a long time, Sakai was the strongest amateur player in Japan, and when he won the World Amateur Go Championship in 2000, the Kansai Ki-in awarded him professional 5 dan (after defeating two 5 dan and two 7 dan). He was also the first player in Japan to be awarded a special 8 dan (amateur) diploma. In 2003, he won the biggest Kansai Ki-in tournament, the Kansai Ki-in Championship. In 2004, he was runner-up for the Shinjin-O title, losing to Mizokami Tomochika two games to one (losing both by half point). He is currently active in various tournament leagues for both the Nihon Ki-in (participation in Meijin league 2005-Present) and Kansai Ki-in.

In 2010, Sakai won the Gosei title, defeating title-holder Cho U 3-2.

Titles and runners-up

Domestic
Title Wins Runners-up
Gosei 1 (2010)
Shinjin-O 1 (2004)
Kansai Ki-in Championship 1 (2003) 2 (2004, 2007)
Total 2 3

External Links