China art in
foreign eyes
World Chinese chess championships

By Cherry Lam
     Chinese chess is not solely for Chinese.
     Eighty-seven players from 28 countries gathered in Hong Kong recently to participate in the Fifth World Xiangqi Championships, held in Kowloon Park from November to December last year. Hong Kong’s team came in third, after the winning Chinese team and second-place Taiwan.
     Courtesy of HKCCA
     Many of the participants were champions of their local Chinese chess associations, and more than 20 of them were non-Chinese.
     The aim of the event was to provide opportunities for top Chinese chess players to learn from each other and to promote Chinese chess overseas.
     The event was held in Hong Kong this time because of the 1997 transition.
     “Besides striving for good results in the event, we wanted to see the changes in Hong Kong after the handover,” said Mr. Larent Kim, captain of the French team and president of the Xiang-Qi Association of France.
     Said the captain of the Western Canada team, Mr. Ma Pui-hung: “With the establishment of the Chinese chess association in Canada, many non-Chinese who are eager to learn this art joined it.
     “Maybe the peaceful and quiet atmosphere of Canada has cultivated our people’s patience in playing the game.
     “We once set up a large Chinese chess board in an exhibition to demonstrate the game, and many foreigners came to try it and showed great interest in it.”
     While most teams had Chinese representatives, all players from Finland and Germany were non-Chinese.
     “We are proud of our skills in Chinese chess as non-Chinese,” said Mr. Simon Henke, a German participant.
     “Chinese culture seemed mysterious until I learnt how to play Chinese chess,” said Mr. Raimo Lindroos, captain of the Finnish team.
     Mr. Lee Chee-hoi, secretary general and preparatory advisor of the Tournament Committee, said, “We have a special prize for the non-Chinese champion because we want to attract more foreigners to learn Chinese chess.”
     All rounds of the competitions were shown on Internet. Spectators at the venue were invited to play against foreign players through Internet.
     The co-ordinator of the Live Internet Xiangqi Demonstration, Mr. Leung Lee-shing, said, “Among those who are devoted to developing Chinese chess on the Internet, the number of non-Chinese is more than the Chinese.”
     Dr. Henry Y.T. Fok is very keen on promoting Chinese chess as the quintessence of Chinese culture, a folk art and a sport.
     He is the chairman of World Xiangqi Federation, president of Asia Xiangqi Federation and honourary president of Hong Kong Chinese Chess Association.
     Dr. Fok and his son Mr. Timothy T.T. Fok sponsored all the prize awards for this championship, amounting to $300,000.
     The Provisional Urban Council was the co-organiser, spending $300,000 on the program.
     The total costs amounted to about $1,000,000.
     “Money is a major problem,” said Mr. Chan Sai-sang, treasurer of the Tournament Committee. “Besides sponsorship from the PUC, we got the remaining sum from individual donations.
     “Time and skill is another problem. We are all part-time organisers having our own jobs and we haven’t held such a big event before.”


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January 1998

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