2023-10-11 01:38:41
For six years, Xu Haohong took the high-speed train to and from Hsinchu and Taipei every day in order to practice chess at the chess academy.
The psychological quality of insisting on training and not giving up in the face of setbacks allowed this purely competitive Go boy to win the gold medal at this year’s Hangzhou Asian Games, surprising the world.
Xu Haohong looked around and stepped onto the podium with hesitant steps. September 28 was a bit unreal to him.
As Taiwan’s national Go player, he was a dark horse at this year’s Hangzhou Asian Games, winning the men’s individual championship and winning Taiwan’s first Asian Games Go gold medal in history. His face was young and reserved, but when he played chess, his expression instantly became calm and composed, and this face suddenly appeared on the pages of major media that night.
On the podium, standing on either side of him were Shin Jin-soo, the number one Go player in South Korea, and Ke Jie, the Chinese chess champion. He defeated these two opponents in the semi-finals in the morning and the final in the followingnoon. Compared with the masters who have dominated the international chess world for many years beside him, Xu Haohong, standing in the middle, looked awkward and uneasy, his eyes wandering, and his fingers holding the bouquet twisted uncomfortably.
It’s hard to imagine that the same hands had dropped the chess pieces with a straight and sharp posture just a few hours ago, winning the final from a winning rate of less than 20%. For Xu Haohong, the gold medal on his chest and the attention that came with it were indeed far beyond his expectation.
(Photography/Wu Dongyue)
Aiming for the top 4, but conquering the top 3 in the world and winning the gold medal
“This time I didn’t set my goal there (championship). If I might reach the semi-finals, I would have achieved my goal.” When he returned to Taiwan following the game and was interviewed by “Today’s Weekly”, Xu Haohong said quietly: “This time, I will reach the finals. On the contrary, I don’t feel nervous, I just focus on the chess game.” During the interview, which lasted more than an hour, he carefully considered every word in his answers, just like the moves he makes following a long exam when playing chess, which are brief and efficient.
Although Xu Haohong has frequently won championships in domestic competitions in Taiwan in recent years, and even set a record last year by winning 8 of the 9 major professional chess tournaments, his previous performance in international competitions has not been outstanding. According to the professional chess player ranking website Go Ratings As of the beginning of this year, it was only ranked 30th. This time at the Hangzhou Asian Games, he was able to beat the top three players in the world in the quarterfinals, quarterfinals and finals.
Although there is an element of luck in his consecutive victories, his calm and calm psychological quality when facing strong opponents and being at a disadvantage in the chess game is even more amazing.
In the final match with Ke Jie, Xu Haohong, who was originally invincible, was delayed in attacking and killing, but Ke Jie reversed the situation and put the situation in danger. “Usually at that stage we are almost losing, and we would be very upset, but at the moment of that game I was very calm and just kept waiting for his mistakes.” Xu Haohong said. In the final stage, he caught Ke Jie’s several major mistakes and came back to win once more.
This is not the first time Xu Haohong and Ke Jie have played once morest each other in a competition. In the Chunlan Cup of the international chess competition three years ago, Xu Haohong also played once morest Ke Jie, but he lost to his opponent and stopped in the top 8. Xu Haohong talked regarding his growth in the past three years from these two competitions: “The strength gap between me and him must be closer than it was then. In terms of mentality, I also adapted better. I didn’t think too much regarding winning the gold or silver medal at the moment of the competition. problem.” His stable mental state made up for the gap in chess ability, and made Xu Haohong the biggest dark horse in the Asian Games this time.
The pre-match ritual “Stacking chess pieces” highlights childlike innocence and competitive spirit
When analyzing his own game status, the young and dull Xu Haohong flashed in front of him with the confidence and shrewdness of a chess veteran. However, when asked what rituals he does to adjust his mood before a game, the veteran chess player suddenly becomes an innocent boy once more. “It’s very casual. It should be said that there is no fixed task…” He paused and said shyly, “This time… I just stack the chess pieces before the game.”
Stacking chess pieces? Xu Haohong explained that in the lounge, he would take the Go pieces and stack them up one by one. “I can stack up to 16 pieces.” His tone was always calm, and there was no trace of pride in it. We asked him to stack the chess pieces on the table to show us, and he explained seriously: “But the Chinese chess pieces are different. They are flat on one side, so they are easier to stack.” As he said that, he took out his mobile phone to check the Chinese chess pieces. I was shown the shape of it, but unfortunately I mightn’t find it, so I had to give up.
Long before he became a Go genius who calmly won gold medals, Xu Haohong was always a playful child. His playfulness and drive to win have also accompanied him through several setbacks all the way to where he is now.
The starting point of Xu Haohong’s Go can be traced back to when he was five years old. When he was still in the upper class, he started learning Go with his brother under the arrangement of his family. I asked him why he fell in love with Go? “I don’t remember, maybe I just thought it was fun, I have talent, and I get some sense of accomplishment…” He thought for a while and gave a brief answer.
Xu Haohong has no memory of most of his early childhood memories of learning chess. But during the interview, he clearly remembered that when he competed for the first time when he was 5 or 6 years old, he passed the test smoothly, “but lost the last set and finished second.”
When talking regarding losing for the first time, Xu Haohong was not too depressed. When talking regarding winning the Asian Games this time, his tone was equally dull. But from his memories, the image of a competitive child gradually became clear: “At that time, I learned (Go) relatively quickly in the classroom, and I felt that I was very strong… After losing the game, it may have inspired me a little bit. I have a competitive spirit, and I want to continue to become stronger.” Xu Haohong’s tone was calm and slow, but there was a passion for the protagonist of a young comic flowing between his words.
Xu Haohong’s parents saw their son’s talent and fully supported his training at the chess academy. In the second year of his promotion, Haifeng Chess Academy established an elite team and invited Xu Haohong to join. Recalling that time, Xu Haohong said that he impulsively decided to start self-study at home with the support and respect of his parents, and started a life of training from Hsinchu to the Taipei Chess Academy every day, training from 9 am to 5 pm every day. This kind of life lasted for 6 years.
Giving up campus life and commuting alone across counties and cities every day seems too depressing for a growing teenager. Asked Xu Haohong if he would be lonely during those days? He said: “I have more or less longing for student life and find it interesting, but I chose this path myself and I have never really regretted it.”
Life is like a chess move with no regrets. At only 22 years old, he has long been aware of his life choices.
▲In the final of the men’s Go individual competition at the Hangzhou Asian Games, Xu Haohong (right) faced Chinese chess king Ke Jie (left). (Photo/Provided by the Chinese Olympic Committee)
After 3 years of practice, I failed and fell into a low ebb. I once wanted to give up my career as a chess player.
However, having no regrets does not mean that there was no pressure and low points in the process. In 2017, Xu Haohong left school and entered a chess academy to train for three years. He competed in the “Chess King Tournament”, an important domestic professional event. After intensive training, he originally thought that he was well prepared and should be able to perform, but he unexpectedly failed and missed the chance to play. Enter the cycle. This setback even made him contemplate quitting his career as a professional chess player and return to school.
“It is inevitable that there will be pressure.” Xu Haohong said frankly: “After all, I gave up my studies and still hoped to gain something in Go. I didn’t expect to lose so easily.”
With the thought of half-giving up, Xu Haohong began to prepare for the next game. Unexpectedly, the lack of dedication to results allowed him to relax and win the next event in the same year: “Sometimes when you want results too much and are under too much pressure, you tend to go crazy.” Xu Haohong said that this experience , and also allowed him to learn the importance of adjusting his mentality during the game.
This time at the Hangzhou Asian Games, he won the championship with his perseverance. Ask him if he is now very good at dealing with setbacks in games? He fell into a long test once more, as if this problem was much more difficult than playing chess. Finally, he gave a practical reply: “Whether you can really overcome these setbacks, you still need to encounter them to know.” He added: “But experiencing it a few times will always help.”
A competitive young man who is always down-to-earth on the road to Go. After the Asian Games, he gave a speech: “I have achieved my childhood dream. My childhood dream is to beat the best players in the world, so I am very happy.”
Talking regarding his goals for the next stage, he said that on the one hand, he must continue to move towards the world championships, and on the other hand, he also wants to use the influence of this gold medal to help promote Taiwanese Go in the future. It is very exciting to see how the boy in front of him will further transform into a stronger person in the future.
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