Japanese Chess – Shogi – 将棋
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  • Shogi 2004 in Review

    By Galo S Mirth

    Akira Watanabe (渡辺明), professional shogi player
    Akira Watanabe (渡辺明), who won his first Ryūō title in the 17th Ryūō-sen (2004). Source: Wikimedia Commons, File:Akira_Watanabe.jpg. Author: nakashi. License: CC BY-SA 2.0. (Image originally from Flickr; cropped version on Commons.)

    Shogi in 2004 was a year of shifting generations. Toshiyuki Moriuchi took the Meijin title back from Yoshiharu Habu, but the headline story at year’s end was a new name at the very top: Akira Watanabe captured the Ryūō crown for the first time.

    Below is a compact, source-backed tour of the year’s biggest title matches and several other notable results (including women’s titles). The dates in the Japanese sources are written in “2004年度” terms (roughly April 2004 to March 2005), but the main title series listed here were played across 2004.

    1. Major title matches (2004)

    • 62nd Meijin (第62期名人戦): Toshiyuki Moriuchi (森内俊之) defeated Meijin Yoshiharu Habu (羽生善治) 4-2 and became Meijin again (2nd time overall).
    • 75th Kisei (第75期棋聖戦): Yasumitsu Satō (佐藤康光) defended the Kisei title against Moriuchi 3-0.
    • 45th Ōi (第45期王位戦): Habu won the Ōi title, defeating Kōji Tanigawa (谷川浩司) 4-1.
    • 52nd Ōza (第52期王座戦): Habu defended the Ōza title against Moriuchi 3-1 (continuing his long Ōza run).
    • 17th Ryūō (第17期竜王戦): Akira Watanabe (渡辺明) defeated Ryūō Moriuchi 4-3 to win his first major title.

    Even from just these results, the year’s narrative is clear: Moriuchi rose to the top with the Meijin, Habu remained a constant force (Ōi and Ōza), and Watanabe’s Ryūō breakthrough opened a new chapter.

    Other notable tournament results

    • 22nd Asahi Open Shogi Championship (第22回朝日オープン将棋選手権): Habu won the tournament (final held May 25, 2004) over Kōichi Fukaura (深浦康市).
    • 12th Ginga-sen (第12期銀河戦): Habu won again, defeating Tanigawa in the final (September 25, 2004).
    • 25th JT Shogi Japan Series (第25回JT将棋日本シリーズ): Yasumitsu Satō won (final November 28, 2004) over Toshiaki Kubo (久保利明).
    • 35th Shinjin-Ō (第35期新人王戦): Takayuki Yamazaki (山崎隆之) won (final November 4, 2004) over Shinya Satō (佐藤紳哉).

    Women’s shogi highlights (selected)

    • 26th Women’s Ōshō (第26期女流王将): Hiroe Nakai (中井広恵) defended 3-1 against Yukio Ishibashi (石橋幸緒).
    • 15th Women’s Ōi (第15期女流王位): Ichiyo Shimizu (清水市代) defended 3-0 against Rieko Yanai (矢内理絵子).
    • 12th Kurashiki Tōka (第12期倉敷藤花): Ichiyo Shimizu took the title from Nakai 2-1.

    What to remember about 2004

    • Moriuchi’s spring resurgence: winning the Meijin match against Habu set the tone for the year’s title picture.
    • Habu’s continuing dominance: even while losing Meijin, he still captured or defended major crowns and won big open events.
    • Watanabe’s arrival: the 17th Ryūō win (4-3) was a true turning point, introducing a new future long-term titleholder.

    Sources (Japanese)

    • Wikipedia (Japanese): 「2004年度の将棋界」 (oldid=106888681) https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004%E5%B9%B4%E5%BA%A6%E3%81%AE%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B%E7%95%8C?oldid=106888681
    • Wikipedia (Japanese): 「第17期竜王戦」 (oldid=99511025) https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AC%AC17%E6%9C%9F%E7%AB%9C%E7%8E%8B%E6%88%A6?oldid=99511025
    • Wikipedia (Japanese): 「第45期王位戦」 (oldid=98237058) https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AC%AC45%E6%9C%9F%E7%8E%8B%E4%BD%8D%E6%88%A6?oldid=98237058
    • Wikipedia (Japanese): 「第75期棋聖戦 (将棋)」 (oldid=98238305) https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AC%AC75%E6%9C%9F%E6%A3%8B%E8%81%96%E6%88%A6_(%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B)?oldid=98238305

  • Shogi 2001 in Review

    By Galo S Mirth

    After a dramatic changing of the guard in 2000, the next season kept the title picture in motion. The 2001 season (April 2001 to March 2002, following Japanese convention) featured a Meijin match that went the distance again, a mid-year crown changing hands, and a late-year surge that left Yoshiharu Habu holding a familiar cluster of trophies. Meanwhile, annual awards highlighted both elite consistency and the kind of new ideas that keep opening theory alive.

    Here is a compact tour of 2001, using Japanese records and summaries.

    1) Another seven-game Meijin: Maruyama defends by the narrowest margin

    The Meijin remains the title most tightly connected to long-form league results, and in 2001 it again ended in a full seven games. Tadahisa Maruyama (丸山忠久) successfully defended the 59th Meijin title against Koji Tanigawa (谷川浩司) by 4-3.

    It is easy to remember winners and forget the scorelines, but a 4-3 defense matters. It tells you the gap at the very top was not wide. Even champions were living on precision and nerve.

    2) A shift in early summer: Masataka Goda takes the Kisei

    The 72nd Kisei (棋聖戦) brought a title change: Masataka Goda (郷田真隆) defeated defending champion Habu by 3-2. Five-game matches are short enough that preparation has to be sharp from move one, and long enough that a single swing game can redefine the whole story.

    3) Habu’s mid-year control: Oi and Oza stay put

    Even with a crown slipping away, Habu steadied the center of the title scene. In the 42nd Oi (王位戦), he won 4-0 against Nobuyuki Yashiki (屋敷伸之). In the 49th Oza (王座戦), he defended 3-1 against Toshiaki Kubo (久保利明). Together, those results made the season feel less like a reshuffle and more like a tightening spiral around the same leading names.

    4) The calendar-year climax: a Ryu-o comeback

    The late-year headline was the 14th Ryu-o (竜王戦). Habu won the title by 4-1 against reigning Ryu-o Takeshi Fujii (藤井猛). In one match, the season’s balance changed: the player who began the year as a challenger in one place ended it reclaiming the game’s richest crown.

    5) The winter titles: Sato breaks through, and the rivalry continues

    The season also included a key first: Yasumitsu Sato (佐藤康光) won the 51st Osho (王将戦), defeating Habu 4-2 for his first Osho title. Not long after, Habu defended the 27th Kio (棋王戦) against Sato by 3-1, a reminder that these matchups were becoming a recurring engine of top-level shogi.

    Table of major shogi title match winners in the 2001 season (April 2001 to March 2002).
    Major title match winners for the 2001 season (April 2001 to March 2002). Diagram by Galo S Mirth. License: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication).

    6) What the awards said about 2001

    The annual Shogi Awards (将棋大賞) act like a snapshot of what stood out to insiders at the time. In the 29th awards (covering the 2001 season), Habu was named Most Outstanding Player. The list also pointed to a deeper story: Masataka Goda (Distinguished Performance) and Yasumitsu Sato (Technique) were recognized for their impact, while Kazuki Kimura (木村一基) swept several statistical categories (most games, most wins, best winning percentage). Finally, the Masuda Kozo Award (升田幸三賞) went to Masakazu Kondo (近藤正和) for the development of Gokigen Central Rook (ゴキゲン中飛車), an opening idea that captured the mood of that era: take the initiative early, and make the fight happen on your terms.

    Closing thought

    If 2000 felt like a door opening, 2001 felt like the room filling up. Champions defended by one game, challengers broke through, and the awards underlined how both results and ideas were moving at the same time. The season did not belong to one player alone, but it did show how quickly the title landscape can swing when preparation, confidence, and invention align.

    Sources (Japanese)

    • Wikipedia (日本語): 「2001年度の将棋界」 (oldid 106886762). https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2001%E5%B9%B4%E5%BA%A6%E3%81%AE%E5%B0%86%E6%A3%8B%E7%95%8C&oldid=106886762 (accessed 2026-02-14)
    • 日本将棋連盟: 「将棋大賞 受賞者一覧」. https://www.shogi.or.jp/player/winner03.html (accessed 2026-02-14)
    • Wikipedia (日本語): 「ゴキゲン中飛車」 (oldid 105513818). https://ja.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E3%82%B4%E3%82%AD%E3%82%B2%E3%83%B3%E4%B8%AD%E9%A3%9B%E8%BB%8A&oldid=105513818 (accessed 2026-02-14)