Kobayashi Izumi

Keywords: People

Kobayashi Izumi's Nihon Ki-in photo

Kobayashi Izumi (小林泉美, b. 20 June 1977) is a Japanese, professional 7-dan born in Tokyo, Japan. She is a member of the Nihon Ki-in.

Kobayashi Izumi has won 11 titles, 4th place in the number of women's titles. In 2003, she and her husband were called the "Honinbo Couple", because Cho was Honinbo and Kobayashi Female Honinbo.

Table of contents
Family

Titles

Runners-up

Head-to-head scores against current female rivals

Photos

Notes

See Also

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Family

Izumi is the daughter of Kobayashi Koichi and Kobayashi Reiko (nee Kitani), and the granddaughter of Kitani Minoru. She is the wife of Cho U and the mother of Cho Kosumi and Cho Koharu. Izumi's main Go teacher was her mother.

Kobayashi gave birth to her first daughter Cho Kosumi on 24 March 2006, and second daughter Cho Koharu on 10 November 2009. Like her mother before her, at the top of her career as one of the best female Go players in Japan, she suspended her career to support her husband and raise her children.

After her youngest daughter followed in her older sister's footsteps and became a professional on 1 April 2022, Kobayashi returned to professional Go that year.

On 25 February 2024, she won her first title in 16 years, to the delight of her many admirers, when she defeated Koyama Terumi in the final of [ext] 3rd Teikei Cup Female Legends.

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Titles

1998: 1st Women's Kisei
1999: 2nd Women's Kisei
2001: 13th Women's Meijin
2001: 20th Women's Honinbo
2002: 21st Women's Honinbo
2003: 15th Women's Meijin
2003: 22nd Women's Honinbo
2004: 16th Women's Meijin
2004: JAL Female HayaGo
2005: 6th Female Strongest
2007: 1st Daiwa Ladies Cup
2023–4: 3rd Teikei Cup Female Legends

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Runners-up

1996: 17th Women's Kakusei
1999: 18th Women's Honinbo
1999: 20th Women's Kakusei
2000: 3rd Women's Kisei
2000: 12th Women's Meijin
2001: 22nd Women's Kakusei
2002: 14th Women's Meijin
2004: 22nd Women's Honinbo
2005: 17th Women's Meijin

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Head-to-head scores against current female rivals

(Based on [ext] Kobayashi Izumi, Go Ratings and game list), as of 21 Mar 2024

Sugiuchi Kazuko, 8p, 4× All-Japan Women's Championship, 4× Women's Meijin, 2× Women's Kakusei: 3–2
Kusunoki Teruko, 8p, Sugiuchi Kazuko's youngest sister, 5× Female Honinbo, 3× Women's Kakusei: 3–0
Yoshida Mika, 8p, 4× Women's Honinbo, 4× Kansai Ladies' Tournament, once Women's Kakusei: 5–3
Aoki Kikuyo, 8p, 5× Women's Meijin, 4× Women's Kakusei, once Female Kisei: 10–6
Yoshida Mika, 8p, 4× Women's Honinbo, 4× Kansai Ladies' Tournament, once Women's Kakusei: 5–3
Fujisawa Rina, 7p, #9 female in world, #2 female in Japan: 0–1
Xie Yimin, 7p, #30 ranked female in the world, #5 ranked female in Japan (many years #1): 2–6
Ogawa Tomoko, 7p, once Female Honinbo, 2× All-Japan Women's Championship: 2–1
Kato Keiko, 6p, once Women's Meijin, once Female Strongest: 4–4
Umezawa Yukari, 6p, 3× Female Kisei: 4–3
Kobayashi Chizu, 6p, 3× Women's Kakusei and All-Japan Women's Championship: 2–0
Chinen Kaori, 6p, 5× Female Kisei, 4× Women's Honinbo: 9–13
Mukai Chiaki, 6p, once Women's Honinbo: 2–3
Ueno Asami, 5p, according to rating list, #5 female and #200 overall in the world, and #1 female and #27 overall in Japan: 0–3
Ueno Risa, 2p, Asami's younger sister, #21 female and #3 female teenager in world, #3 female in Japan, [Female Kisei: 0–1
Nakazawa Ayako, 5p, 4–2
Nyu Eiko, 4p, 2× Female Strongest: 0–1
Nakamura Sumire, 3p, #22 female and #5 female teenager in the world, #4 ranked female in Japan: 1–1

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Photos

Kobayashi Izumi with her husband Cho U and younger daughter Cho Koharu after Koharu became a pro, 2022 (Image credit: zhuanlan.zhihu.com

Kobayashi Izumi with her husband and two daughters, 2010 (Image credit: vip.udn.com

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Notes

On 29 July 2004, Kobayashi Izumi faced her father Koichi at the 43rd Judan tournament, making the game the first ever father-daughter pro tournament game. They both played a fighting game with her father winning as White in the end.

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