Topping 123 players from over 15 states, Xingke Sun 7D emerged victorious at the Evanston Go Club’s 2023 Chicago Rapid Championship on November 4.
In a climactic final match against 2023 Chicago Open runner-up Yifan Wu 7D, Sun, who has dreamt of becoming a professional Go player since childhood, won the game to clinch the championship with a flawless 5-0 record. Sun credited teachers Sun Yi Guo 8D and Cai Jing 6P for instilling a fearless approach to the game and noted that it was “challenging” to play five games in one day. “It's a test of both energy and strength,” Sun said.
Runner-up Yifan Wu 7D said he appreciates the welcoming environment. “I've always been drawn to the Chicago tournaments mainly because of the people,” Wu said. “The organizers attach great importance to the tournaments, and the players are also very friendly and enthusiastic. The mutual respect and the shared love for Go make it an enriching experience.”
That perspective was shared by competitors at the other end of the field, like 18-kyu Kartik Saraf, who said that “This game has changed my life and given me something to strive for that’s bigger than myself, not to mention the friends I’ve made along the way.”
Full standings are posted here and the winners’ list here. In other related stories, the 2023 Chicago Rapid marked the return of Ellie Spohr 1D to competitive play after 13 years, and was featured in both The Daily Northwestern and the Evanston Roundtable.
- adapted from a longer report by Jamie Tang. photos: 2023 Chicago Rapid champions Binhao Wang 4D, Sungsoo Kim 5D, Yifan Wu 7D, and Xingke Sun 7D (left to right) pose with Organizing Director Albert Yen 8D at Evanston Immanual Lutheran Church. Not pictured: Shiqian Xu 5D. Photo courtesy Devin Fraze. Youth players compete alongside adults in the main section of the 2023 Chicago Rapid on Nov. 4, 2023. Photo courtesy David Schiller.