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Pourkavoos tops Simsbury Tourney

Aresh Pourkavoos took first place at the 1st Simsbury Open Scholastic Go Tournament, at the Simsbury Library, in  Connecticut,  on March 2nd.  The tournament was held in conjunction with the Simsbury Scholastic Chess Tournament. "We had 6 fierce go competitors enter the tournament," reports Mike Spaner.  "This was the first go tournament for all of the entrants.  Our young players not only battled for 5  rounds, but they also took  the time to teach many curious onlookers from the chess side of the playing hall  (there were roughly 90 chess players). Although outnumbered, our young go ambassadors  (all new AGA members) did a wonderful job promoting the game of go.  The kids were all very excited to meet  others who share  their love for the game. Between rounds, there were some great hallway discussions on suggested playing strategies and tactics. One of the chess player’s parents had not played go for many years and was excited to get in a game between rounds.  As an observer, I was very happy to see how energized the kids were during and after the tournament. A small, friendly, but competitive tournament for our our youth really helps spark a deeper interest in the game that we love. The Central Connecticut Go Club would like to  extend a special thank you to Gert Hilhorst for organizing the overall Chess and  Go  tournament. The entire event was flawlessly executed by Gert and his team with the helpful assistance of the library staff. We also would like to  thank Mike Scudder for  serving  as  our Tournament Director.  Kiseido publishing graciously provided a discount on gift certificates for our prize winners, and the kids were thrilled with their prizes,"  adds Spaner.  Winners Report: 1st place: Aresh Pourkavoos; 2nd place: Sophie Spaner; 3rd place: Matt Miller. -Paul Barchilon, E-J Youth Editor.  Story and photo by Mike Spaner.