Former Honinbo player beats his wife… “Surprising words and actions” shown in a direct interview after his release.

A man climbs into a police vehicle with a slightly downcast look on his face. Even through his mask, you can see his exhausted expression. The man is a very famous person in the Go world: Cho Seong-jin, 52, a professional Go player from South Korea who won one of the three major titles, Honinbo, in 1999 at the young age of 29 and made his name known.

My husband is on the rampage,” she said. He beat me up.

It was a little after 9:00 p.m. on November 13 when a woman in a state of urgency called 110. When officers from the Tomisaka Police Station of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department arrived at the residence in Bunkyo Ward, the woman’s right eye was red, swollen, and bruised. The officers arrest the husband, Cho, on suspicion of inflicting injury on his wife.

The suspect apparently struck his wife in the face with his bare hands. He admitted the crime to investigators, saying, ‘I’m sure I hit her. He said, “We were discussing family matters and he lost his temper. Just before the incident, Cho and his wife were said to have been in a heated argument for an hour. It seems that they had a disagreement about the education and discipline of their children,” said a reporter from the society section of a national newspaper.

Arrived in Japan at the age of 12 to become a professional

Cho’s career as a professional Go player has been spectacular. Born in Gwangju Metropolitan City in the southwestern part of South Korea, Cho began attending a Go club when he was in the fourth grade of elementary school, and came to Japan in 1982 at the age of 12 to become a professional. He became an apprentice of Takeo Ando 6-dan and was promoted to 9-dan in 1998.

The highlight of his career was in 1999. He challenged Chikun Cho (honorary Meijin), who had won 10 consecutive Honinbo titles for the first time in history, and defied most expectations to win 4-2. His prize money ranking that year was 4th, his highest. He spent most of his time playing Go, with only occasional golf as a hobby.

However, after that, Mr. Cho did not have a good year. After achieving a total of 500 wins in 2004, his winning percentage gradually declined.

Mr. Cho got married in 2004, when he was at a crossroads as a professional Go player. Mr. Taihei Ogawa, a former detective of the prefectural police and a crime journalist, who is familiar with Go because his son won second place in a tournament in Kanagawa Prefecture when he was a child, said, “When he was in his 20s, Cho was a professional Go player.

When he was in his 20s, Cho had great momentum. He was untouchable. But as he got older, he couldn’t play Go as well as he wanted to, and it is not hard to imagine that his frustration grew.

Marriage is an important point in life. Especially for athletes, it has many positive effects. When you are single, you have to do all the cooking and laundry by yourself, but if you get married, you can focus more on your sport. On the other hand, some athletes feel stress from living together, which they have never experienced before. When a couple has a child and the educational burden increases, they may have differences of opinion. The suspect Cho, who had many troubles as a professional due to his poor performance, may not have been able to strike a good balance between Go and family life.

The suspect, Cho, was released from the Tomisaka Police Station on the evening of November 15. When celebrities are released from prison, they are often accompanied by their lawyers, who issue an apology to the press. However, in the case of Cho, there was no lawyer to welcome him, nor was there anyone from the Nihon Ki-in. Only one person …….

We directly interviewed Cho, who was walking home in a red turtleneck and rain suit pants.

–Why did you hit your wife?

No, well…

Could you tell us why you did it?

No, well ……

–Have you ever hit your wife before?

‘…… (silently covering his face with his hands)’

What is required in a game of Go would be calm judgment. The suspect Cho may not have been able to keep his reason about his family problems.