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2012 WAGC Readies for Launch in Guangzhou

To a casual passerby it was just a couple of guys playing go on a Friday night. But this was the Friday night before the 2012 World Amateur Go Championship (WAGC) in Guangzhou, China, and the go players were Hideo Otake 9P (right), Chairman of the Nihon Kiin Board of Directors and IGF President Zhenming Chang (left), Vice Chairman and President of the CITIC Group, a major Chinese firm dealing in finance, real estate, resource development, manufacturing and telecommunications. The two sat down for a quiet game in the lounge on the 30th floor of the Baiyung Hotel, where players from around the world continued to arrive and check in for the 33rd annual event, which begins Sunday and features players from 64 countries in an 8-round championship to determine the top amateur player. Click here for the list of players and here -- Warming Up for Guangzhou -- for Ranka Online's report on how some of the WAGC contestants have been taking advantage of the extensive slate of European tournaments to get into shape for this tournament. - Chris Garlock; photo by John Pinkerton