Students learn the ancient game of Go

In a room cramped with students, a man stands at the board with small black and white chips in his hands. As he places them over a yellow board mounted on the wall, the pieces magically form strategic patterns in an age-old game of conquering land and enemy pieces.

The game is Go, and the man is John Goon, a special guest specially invited to instruct Blazers in the techniques of the game.

For an hour after school, over forty students listened attentively as Goon described different ways to encircle and capture an opponent, the main concept behind Go.

Go, known as Weiqi in Chinese and as Baduk in Korean, was developed in China between 1000 and 2000 BCE for religious purposes. Over time, it became a national Chinese pastime. Around 600 CE, Buddhist monks took the game to Korea and Japan, where it was eagerly welcomed. As time passed, rules changed, and techniques were refined.

Today, there are between 15,000 to 30,000 Go players in the United States.

Goon, who believes that Go is best learned through demonstration, set up a large board and had round magnetic pieces of black and white placed on the board in order to demonstrate the basics of the game.

After briefly recounting of the history of Go, Goon began by explaining the main idea behind the game. Opponents battle one another in an attempt to capture the most space on the board. Goon emphasized the importance of choosing a move carefully.

"Once it's [the piece] is played, it doesn't move. You can't take it back," he explained.

Blazers who had already learned how to play Go before still enjoyed the session. Freshman Randy Li said, "I've already learned Weiqi, [but] it was cool."

Other students enjoyed the session, not just for the game itself, but also for its tie into the cultures of Asia. "I thought that I learned a lot about Chinese culture," said senior Noah Grosfeld-Katz.

Goon found his way to Blair through the Chinese Club website where he then contacted the president of the club, senior William Hwang. The two arranged a date on which Goon could come.

Hwang is planning more Chinese Club activities for the upcoming year. There are plans for fundraisers at cultural fairs and for a possible volleyball tournament in the near future.