Michael Redmond: Teaching Week 2013
Between 30th March and 9th April 2013 Michael Redmond, 9 dan, visited the UK. Michael was born in the USA in 1963, but moved to Japan in 1979 to become an insei. He is the only non-oriental player to have achieved the strength of professional 9 dan.
You can see his profile on the Nihon Ki-in site here, but you need to be able read Japanese...
Pictures taken from some of the events are in the visit's gallery.
Here is a Biog of Michael including photos.
Michael was conducting several events during that week (click for details).
Junior Training 30th March
Strong Player's Weekend 31st March - 1st April
Swindon 2nd April
Chester 3rd April
Leamington 4th April
British Go Congress 5th April - 7th April
Junior Teaching/Demonstration
On Saturday 30th March, Michael visited Cambridge Junior Chess and Go Club from 16:00 to 18:00. It was at St Augustine’s Hall, Richmond Road, Cambridge CB4 3PS.
Strong Player's Weekend
On 31st March and 1st April (Easter Sunday/Monday) there was a "Strong Players Weekend" in Cambridge. Entry was limited to 20, and selection was based on current position in the EGF ranking list.
This venue is the “Doubletree by Hilton” in Granta Place, Mill Lane, Cambridge CB2 1RT. This used to be the Garden House Hotel.
On 31st March the event started at 11:00 and finished at 18:00.
On 1st April it was 9:30 until 16:30.
Swindon
On Tuesday 2nd April Michael was visiting Swindon Go Club. There were two sessions:
- Between 16:00 and 18:30 he played simultaneous games
- Between 20:00 and 22:30 he gave a lecture/demonstration/game reviews.
Chester
On Wednesday 3rd April, Michael was visiting Chester Go Club at The Olde Custom House. The event took place upstairs, in the private function room. There were 2 sessions:
- Between 16:00 and 18:30, he reviewed games brought by some attendees. Comments made were suitable for the single-digit kyu level (most attendees will be in this range).
- Between 19:30 and 22:30, Michael first played simultaneous games (giving some tips to each opponent). After that, Michael gave general comments on matters arising from the games in general.
Leamington
On Thursday 4th April he visited Leamington Go Club.
The evening session took place in the conference room of the Granville Arms.
The Granville Arms is a gastropub in Barford, Warwickshire. Barford is a village about 1 mile from the A46/M40 (M40 Junction 15). The room was available from 19:00.
From 19:30 to 20:30, Michael gave a lecture using his own games, focusing on reading, counting and sente. There was then a half-hour break, when you could do the team quiz, chat or whatever.
From 21:00 to 22:00 Michael gave three game commentaries.
British Go Congress
Between Friday 5th April and Sunday 7th April Michael was attending the British Go Congress in Stevenage. On the Friday afternoon, from 14:00, he gave a teaching session, and during the Congress he provided game reviews.
About Michael Redmond
Michael Redmond was born in 1963 in Santa Barbara, California, and began playing Go at age 11. At the age of 14, he became an insei at the Nihon Ki-in. He was promoted to professional 1 dan at age 18, and 2 dan in the same year. He was promoted to 5 dan in 1985; 8 dan in 1996; and 9 dan in 2000, becoming the first western Go professional to reach 9 dan.
Michael has not won any titles but has come close. He was runner-up in the Shinjin-O, Kisei 7 dan section, and NEC Shun-Ei competitions in the early 1990s. He was also a semi-finalist in the Fujitsu Cup and Tong Yang Cup. Currently he is a celebrated commentator for the NHK channel. In 2005, he was voted "Best Commentator" for the NHK channel, over Ishida Yoshio.
He is married to Xian-Xian Niu, a Chinese 5 dan professional. They have two daughters, Yumi and Emi. Michael and his family are sponsors of many Go activities for children in America, such as the Redmond Cup and the Redmond Handicap Tournament. (acknowledgement - Wikipedia)
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