Chapter Text
Tianxia Weiqi
2015.1
Headline: Yu Liang Mingren claims Shi Guang Tianyuan plays no better than a nine year old!’
Yu Liang 9 duan wins the final match of the Mingren tournament, retaining the title once again.
The final round of the Mingren tournament saw the ‘twin stars’ of the weiqi world, Yu Liang 9 duan and Shi Guang Tianyuan face off in a historical match that had weiqi fans all over the world on the edge of their seats. We sat down with Yu Liang Mingren to chat about his weiqi journey and about his infamous rivalry with Shi Guang Tianyuan.
No doubt your father was a large influence in your early weiqi journey. Was there anything else that influenced your weiqi journey?
Even in my earliest memories, my father was always sitting in front of a weiqi board. As I grew up, I also started to spend more and more time in front of the weiqi board. My father’s students often visited our home so I was never short of people to play weiqi with, although when I was a child only Fang Xu shi xiong indulged me. At that time, weiqi was important to almost everyone I met and it slowly became important to me too.
What has been the biggest obstacle so far in your weiqi journey?
I don’t think this counts as an obstacle as such, but when I was about nine, I lost twice to a boy who was the same age as me. In order to become stronger I left China to study in Korea for six years before coming back to challenge that person again. While this did technically delay my entry into the professional ranks, I don’t think it was an obstacle in my weiqi journey.
Shi Guang Tianyuan has mentioned in previous interviews that he first met you when he was nine years old. Was Shi Guang the boy you lost to?
He was.
I am curious, and no doubt our readers are as well, about your rivalry with Shi Guang. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about that?
Shi Guang is my lifelong rival, that’s the most important point.
Yes, now you have known Shi Guang since you were both children. What would you say has been the most drastic change in him and what has stayed the same?
He hasn’t changed much. He was loud and energetic as a child and he is still loud and energetic. One thing that has changed is his love and understanding of weiqi.
What has changed about his weiqi?
His style now is different, but similar. He is closer than he has ever been to the weiqi that he played when we first met, but not quite there yet.
Are you saying that Shi Guang was a better player when he was nine? [laughs]
I can’t explain it myself and he won’t tell me.
I’ll just say that back then I was chasing him, now he is still chasing me, even though he claims he has caught up [laughs].
There have been rumours for a few years now that you and Shi Guang do not get along. Can you comment on that?
There are rumours that we don’t get along? I’m surprised, we get along fine.
You have not played pair weiqi for some years now. Will we see you playing as a team again?
If there is an opportunity, I wouldn’t mind.
Do you think your teamwork has weakened over the years or become stronger?
I think it has become stronger, there is no one in this world who knows him as well as I do.
Right. Are there any weiqi books that you find instructive or inspirational?
‘Research on Yang production in go’, it holds sentimental value for me.
Yue Zhi 7 duan mentioned in an interview last week that you were a source of motivation for him.
That’s nice.
Right. Are there any professional players or role models who inspire or motivate you today?
My father is always a source of inspiration, a goal for me to reach. There is also my shi xiong, Fang Xu Qisheng who has always been a role model for me.
As for a player who gives me motivation… it would be Shi Guang.
There was a post on the Weida forum last year that became quite the hot topic, I’m not sure if you know about it. Someone overheard you calling Shi Guang careless, frivolous, irrational, unscrupulous and annoying. Can you comment on that?
I think Shi Guang and I were having an argument at the time. I’m sure I said more than that, but yes, that sounds about right.
Right. Not long after that post, there was another post that also became a hot topic amongst the weiqi community. I’m not sure if you have seen it, but the writer claims to be Shi Guang Tianyuan’s ex-girlfriend and alleged that you pressured him into breaking up with her.
I have seen that post. All I can say is that Shi Guang makes his own decisions when it comes to relationships. Besides, they only went on a few dates before it ended, not that eating ramen together can really be counted as a date. It was hardly the love story of the century like she had made it out to be in the forum post.
I am surprised that a magazine like Tianxia Weiqi would take note of gossip and baseless forum posts.
Of course we do not suggest that such rumours are true. In recent years, the Weida forum has become quite the source of information for many in the weiqi community. Although we would encourage readers not to believe everything they read on the forum and to look to traditional media where we actually discuss topics with real people and not just faceless usernames.
I agree with that. Although Shi Guang insists that browsing the forum before bed is a good way to relax the brain.
That is an interesting perspective. It sounds like your relationship with Shi Guang Tianyuan is multifaceted.
You can say that.
How important do you think having a rival has been for your weiqi journey?
It is indispensable and irreplaceable.
We will be interviewing Shi Guang Tianyuan next. Are there any questions that you suggest we put to him? [laugh]
You can ask him to explain why he thinks udon noodles are not real noodles.