Although chess is the most famous game of its kind on the world stage, its Japanese cousin shogi is considerably harder. It’s a lot like chess but if the chess pieces could change their move sets in the middle of the game and captured pieces could suddenly return to the board in any location.
To excel at the game one would need an incredible amount of discipline as even the slightest misstep can spell defeat. That goes for moves both on and off the board as seen in the recent loss by 9th Dan player Amahiko Sato at the 81st Meijin Tournament A Class Ranking Match in Shibuya, Tokyo on Oct 28. These matches determine which A Class player can take on Akira Watanabe for the title of Meijin (“Master”).
Sato’s match against Takuya Nagase, who is a four-time undefeated Oza (“Throne”) title holder, started at 10 a.m., at which time both players were wearing face masks. This is in accordance with rules established last February stating that all players must wear face masks during matches “except for temporary occasions” or unless it is unavoidable for health reasons.
By the 112th move, which took place sometime around 11 p.m., Sato was contemplating his next move when he removed his mask so that it was dangling from one ear. He kept the mask in that state for at least 10 minutes before Nagase started repeatedly leaving the room, presumably to mention it to the officials and ask if it wasn’t grounds for losing the game.
Although the game was broadcast live by the Japan Shogi Association, there wasn’t anyone in the room with Sato and Nagase at the time who was authorized to call the game. As a result, it took some time for Association Director Daisuke Suzuki to confer with other officials about what was going on during which time Sato remained maskless for about an hour. In the end, at six minutes past midnight on the 124th move, Sato was handed a loss by foul for violating the mask rules.
▼ A video of the final six hours of the match. After about four hours and 18 minutes, Sato removes his mask. Nagase leaves the room several times after that. At about the 5:23 mark Suzuki enters the room and ends the game.
Sato argued the ruling, saying that he was never given a warning about his mask, but the officials stood by their decision at the time and advised Sato to file a formal complaint within a week. Including the lack of a warning, there is also ambiguity surrounding the rule’s caveat of “except for temporary occasions.” According to the association, this is intended to cover cases where a player takes a drink, eats, or is at a safe distance from others. However, there is no clear definition of how long “temporary” is.
Nevertheless, the Japan Shogi Association issued a statement on their website on 31 October, saying that the decision stood because players were given regular briefings on the rules at meetings and that the rule was important to prevent other players from having to forfeit future matches in the event they were found to be in close-contact with an infected player.
Online comments such as the following seemed to largely go in favor of the Association.
“People will probably still disagree with it, but the association’s rule makes sense.”
“The point is to keep the mask on as much as possible. If they set a time limit, then people would abuse it by removing their mask for exactly that amount of time.”
“Sato was stupid for breaking such a simple rule.”
“It was a reasonable ruling, but I’m sure anti-maskers who don’t even care about shogi will all have an opinion.”
“I was watching the broadcast and was surprised when it ended suddenly.”
“Is it permitted to capture your opponent’s mask in shogi?”
“The game was going for 14 hours, so I can’t blame them for not watching it closely every minute.”
Although they stand by their ruling, the Japan Shogi Association admitted that more could be done in such cases and promised to have an authorized impartial observer on site during long games such as this one. They will also continue to monitor the need for face masks during matches and revise the rule when conditions permit it.
As for Sato, while the loss means he may not get his shot at taking on Watanabe soon, at least he’ll go down in the annals of shogi for his unprecedented way of losing.
*Source: Mainichi Shimbun, Nikkan Sports, Japan Shogi Association, *Hachima Kiko
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© SoraNews24
42 Comments
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factchecker
What is wrong with you people?
Elvis is here
Ouch. That must have hurt.
*(whisper) should have worn a mask I guess.
Moonraker
It's blatant cruelty.
SDCA
A strategic sport that requires minimal talking, if any at all, requires mask.
A close contact rugby sport that has players yelling to communicate with each other requires no mask.
Yes, makes sense
Wesley
He should have been given a warning, not outright be made to lose the game.
This is too cruel.
jinjapan
It's a proven scientific fact that masks do not prevent covid-19. Just so ridiculous !!
smithinjapan
Well, with all the raucous shouting, coughing, spitting, and even idle chit-chat these guys direct at one another, it's understandable you'd demand they wear masks, unlike sports like rugby, as a poster above mentioned.
Mr Kipling
Really... You could say that mask do no prevent the infection of Covid-19 or any other virus 100% but they do reduce the rate.
You could also argue that the rule is probably unnecessary but as it was the rule and one player broke it... Too bad.
master
I watched the entire 6 hours and I have to tell you, Nagase leaving the room repeatedly was off-putting.
Zizi
Shogi is not harder than chess.
It is in fact the poor relation.
As for masks....oh Japan
Newgirlintown
I’m sure this was in the Japanese news like, last Tuesday or something.
Zizi
As for Nagase, what a sad man.
purple_depressed_bacon
It's come to this. Japan has officially lost the plot. Dismissing him because he wasn't wearing a mask? Lost. The. Plot.
Mat
At any point, the other player could have said "Hey, dude, would you mind putting your mask on?" instead of being a frustrated man-child about it.
Mark
Inhumane and CRUEL.
Yubaru
Wow, I wonder what you are going to say when something truly inhumane an CRUEL actually happens. He didnt die, he DID break an agreed upon rule, like it or not. He knew the rules, he broke one, and got penalized.
Happens all the time in competitions, dont like it, dont participate, that is an option as well, but hardly inhumane or cruel!
Nibek32
Anyone think it’s coincidental that he took off his mask after starting to lose the game?
This is how insecure people lose, they will never admit it’s do to with being out skilled.
kurisupisu
Just have a PCR check before the game starts-too easy!
didou
He should be banned from the sport, no?
Breaking such a rule is unbelievable
raincloud
The Japanese Shogi Association has yet again proven its incompetence.
Overcharging members for “dan” titles. Not allowing people to become professional players after they reach a certain age. The Shogi Association is a decrepit, corrupt organization that should be replaced by people who actually love playing shogi rather than wanting to line their pockets.
At the very least he should have been given a warning.
As often happens in this country, the tattle-tale is rewarded.
Sanjinosebleed
Nagasaki should be banned from ever competing again! Absolute worst moral integrity and poorest sportsmanship ever!
Jimizo
Knew the rules, broke them, got disqualified.
Fair enough.
How right you are, mate. Can’t imagine too many of them could excel at Shogi.
GBR48
Step into 2022 Japan, before it ends.
wtfjapan
It's a proven scientific fact that masks do not prevent covid-19. Just so ridiculous !!
I normally would even bother, but show me the peer review study that shows mask arent effective
what is proven scientifically, is that masks reduce the changes of airborn virus transmissions, no its not fool proof but it does reduce the transmission rate considerably.
https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mSphere.00637-20
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2014564118
but i do agree losing a game over that mask rule is a little excessive. a warning should have been given first.
Guy Gin
Japan becoming such a joke…
Gazman
Sat in the same room opposite each other for 14 hours but wearing a mask means they won’t be ‘close contacts’ if one of them were to test positive. Which clowns make up these rules? 14 hours sat opposite each other at close distance is a ‘close contact’ in most peoples eyes.
Andy
The Japanese and their anti-social, restrictive face mask wearing is becoming ridiculous.
virusrex
People can become infective in the lapse of time between being tested and getting the results, also even PCR is not 100% guaranteed to detect every case.
memoryfix
The foreigners I see in Japan are increasing and many are not wearing masks now. Gradually this will have an effect on making Japanese on the street let go of the ridiculous mask wearing.
Keep it up, people!
sakurasuki
That will be too easy Japan like to make things more complicated.
louisferdinandc
Of course, all this could be avoided since extremely accurate and cheap rapid tests with Cut Off Index (COI) exist and take literally ten minutes. But no, Japanese have to show self discipline and restrain even if doesn’t make any sense (and of course only while in Japan, because when abroad until they step into the flight back home absolutely nobody wear a mask even at the airport gate).
That been said, in this case it was clearly used as a strategy to distract the opponent and it then becomes a matter of rules of the game, nothing to do anymore with the actual sanitary conditions.
master
@wtfjapan
better yet, show us a real-world result where cloth masks have clearly stopped the spread of a respiratory virus. Anywhere.
Country by country, region by region, town by town, village by village.
Anywhere.
(sorry, I won't hold my breath)
painkiller
wtfjapanNov. 4 11:24 pm JST
It makes one wonder why the WHO advised the general public not to wear masks; a decision that was made without relying on scientific evidence.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/world/coronavirus-who-masks-recommendation-trnd/index.html
Kaowaiinekochanknaw
The environmental damage by single usecloth masks is appaling and only getting worse. Billions of tonnes have gone into waterways and the oceans. China and Japan are becoming the worse instigators of this catastrophe.
They are affecting bird population and decimating them worldwide according to recent studies with over 90% of nests containing the microplastics and waste from the masks.
This shogi guy is a hero for not wearing one. Should be given a title for common sense.
Children's development has been hampered. Loads of studies showing the effect on speech and learning.
The masks are dirty and wearing for prolonged periods creates harmful bacteria.
The benefit of not wearing a maskout weighs the reduction in risk (if any) from a virus with a massive survival rate for most people.
Mitigation strategies should only ever be used on the vunerable if they choose to.
Masks are a worldwide disaster.
And have done very little to curb the spread of C19.
In Japan it seems the mask is just a symbol of obidience and compliance to Government officials above and little to do with health.
virusrex
Do you have any scientific source for this? because this is contradicted by the scientific and medical consensus, they are much more likely to be correct in this.
Masks can be used responsibly without polluting, so this is not an argument against their use either, it would be an argument for people to dispose of them appropiately.
Masks are part of the measures that have allowed countless people to survive to the point where the measures become less and less important. That is not a disaster but the opposite, part of the benefits resulting from research during the pandemic.
Tony
This is a good resource with some of the 150 peer reviewed studies showing masks AT BEST do not work:
https://brownstone.org/articles/the-mask-studies-you-should-know/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
virusrex
No, that is the opposite of a good resource, it does not only includes old studies already contradicted by better evidence, it also misrepresent the results of some of the reports presented, and even contradict what the actual authors of the reports say about the results they get.
Here is a good resource on why your source is completely invalid because of their promotion of false, debunked information and impossible conspiracy theories
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/the-spiritual-child-of-the-great-barrington-declaration-promotes-antivaccine-misinformation/
That would be very difficult to believe seein how every institute of science or medicine in the world promotes masks as a very efficient way to reduce transmission and protect people from infection of covid and other respiratory infections thanks to the scientific information gained during the pandemic.
Obviously the experts of the world are the ones better informed about what work or not.
Kaowaiinekochanknaw
Do you have any scientific source for this? because this is contradicted by the scientific and medical consensus, they are much more likely to be correct in this.
Yes. And it's not contradictory at all.
Many scientific and medical studies show that the single use cloth masks as are on the majority of wearers in Japan are pretty much useless against airborne viruses.
The same proponents of the benefits of the masks against transmission, state that a tightly fitted N95 or similar, does have some modest effect but this is not what the vast majority of people in Japan are wearing. Therefore, all you talk about, is against the scientific consensus.
You say the environmental effects of masks re the environment can be used responsibility?
Why the billions of tonnes in the ocean then?
What are your ideas to mitigate this current and ongoing environmental calamity?
I missed your response to the documented harms to children. I also mentioned or the harmful effects of the masks re bacteria but this was ignored.
Interesting.
Tony
Except, of course, that link does not address mask efficacy at all.
One might even look at the url and conclude it is politically motivated.
I also note that before mask mandates were put in place, all of the mask studies on the WHO website were completely against mask use, generally showing negative efficacy. It is now harder or maybe impossible to find them on WHO. Well, they redefined pandemic as well, so no surprise there, as it is all about the politics, and not about science whatsoever. Covid era studies are unfortunately tainted by that politics.