Shogi genius Habu gets record 1,434th victory

Jun 05, 2019 | News On Japan

Jun 05, 2019 (Japan Today) - Professional shogi player Yoshiharu Habu earned his 1,434th win at a tournament in Tokyo on Tuesday, setting a record for victories in the traditional Japanese board game.

The 48-year-old achieved the feat by beating Takuya Nagase, the 26-year-old Eio title holder, after last month matching the previous record set by the late Yasuharu Oyama in 1992.

"This has been one of my major objectives of the year. I'm happy I was able to achieve this goal today," Habu said after the win.

A ninth-dan player, Habu set the record in his 2,027th match with a winning percentage of 70.8 percent, according to the Japan Shogi Association. Oyama set the record in his 2,216th match with a winning percentage of 64.7 percent.

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