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Our Go Players in China: 4th International Traditional Sports Festival

This article was translated automatically from Turkish with AI (Google Gemini). If anything is unclear, the Turkish original prevails.

Türkiye teams. From left: Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz, Hülya Eren, Tuğkan Eren, Kaan Malçok, Irmak Güntav, Berke Üner
Türkiye teams. From left: Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz, Hülya Eren, Tuğkan Eren, Kaan Malçok, Irmak Güntav, Berke Üner.

The Go (Weiqi) tournament held as part of the 4th International Traditional Sports Festival took place between 22 and 26 October 2026 in the city of Qidong in China’s Jiangsu province. The Turkish Go Association (TGOD) participated in the tournament with two teams and six players:

  • Türkiye 1: Tuğkan Eren (team captain), Hülya Eren, Kaan Malçok
  • Türkiye 2 (Urla): Irmak Güntav (team captain), Berke Üner, Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz
Türkiye 2 (Urla): Berke Üner, Irmak Güntav, Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz
Türkiye 2 (Urla): Berke Üner, Irmak Güntav, Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz.

18 players from Croatia, Kazakhstan, Romania, Serbia and Türkiye represented Europe in six teams.

Hosted by the All-China Sports Federation, this year’s festival welcomed over 800 participants from more than 60 countries and regions, with competitions taking place in six traditional sports disciplines. The opening ceremony was held on 23 October at the Qidong Poly Grand Theatre.

The Go tournament was played in two divisions: men’s (60 players) and women’s (37 players). Players from Chinese provincial associations and overseas players met in the same pairing, with a separate ranking created for overseas players. There were 36 overseas players in the men’s division and 24 in the women’s division. These players came from Brazil, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the USA and Europe. Matches were played over 8 rounds using the Swiss system under Chinese rules, with 7.5 points komi and 30 minutes main time plus 3 x 20 seconds byo-yomi.

In the men’s division, our best result was achieved by Kaan Malçok. With 4 wins out of 8 games, Kaan finished 13th among overseas players, missing out on the prize-winning top 12 by just one spot. Tuğkan Eren and Berke Üner achieved 3 wins each. Tuğkan won the match between Tuğkan and Berke, who faced each other in the second round. After losing his first four games, Berke won three of his last four games. In the women’s division, Hülya Eren finished 18th among overseas players with 3 wins, defeating Maira Altynbassova from Kazakhstan in the final round.

Round 2: Tuğkan Eren and Berke Üner
Round 2: Tuğkan Eren and Berke Üner.
Tuğkan Eren
Tuğkan Eren.
Final round: Hülya Eren against Maira Altynbassova from Kazakhstan
Final round: Hülya Eren against Maira Altynbassova from Kazakhstan.

Our players’ results (overseas ranking, wins out of 8 games):

Men (36 players)

  • Kaan Malçok: 13th, 4 wins
  • Tuğkan Eren: 21st, 3 wins
  • Berke Üner: 25th, 3 wins
  • Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz: 35th, 1 win

Women (24 players)

  • Hülya Eren: 18th, 3 wins
  • Irmak Güntav: 21st, 1 win (had a bye in one round)
Round 1: Irmak Güntav (right) against Anja Djukic from Serbia
Round 1: Irmak Güntav (right) against Anja Djukic from Serbia.
Berke Üner
Berke Üner.
Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz
Mustafa Güçlü Yılmaz.
Irmak Güntav
Irmak Güntav.

Europe’s best results were achieved by Romania and Croatia. In the men’s division, Ioan Elian Grigoriu finished 6th, while in the women’s division, Mirta Grigoriu finished 7th, Antonia Stanciu 9th and Marta Miksa 10th to win prizes.

Arrival day, with other European players
Arrival day, with other European players.
Playing hall
Playing hall.
Trophies
Trophies.

We would like to thank the Chinese Weiqi Association, especially Mr Wang Yuanzhuo, for their invitation and hospitality. We congratulate our players who represented Türkiye in China!

Photos: Organising committee. Other photos: https://m.alltuu.com/topic/view/1011470473