Catalin Taranu

Catalin Taranu is a professional 5 dan, born March 31, 1973, at Gura Humorului, Romania. He is one of the few Western go professionals.

Table of contents Playing history Teaching activities Administrative activities Publications Further reading

Playing history

Taranu Started playing Go in 1989 at age 16, and reached the strength of amateur 1 dan after just 1 year. Another year later he reached 4 dan amateur level. In 1996, at age 23, he went to Japan to become an insei. His teacher was Saijo Masataka. Two years later he reached professional 1 dan at the Nihon Kiin. As of June 2001, he is a 5 dan professional. Somewhat notably, he won his initial exhibition game (points handicap) as a 1 dan professional with a 9 dan professional.

EGD rating history:

Teaching activities

After his studies at the Nihon Kiin he returned to Romania, where he has opened his own school and founded the Saijo Club.

In 2015 he started to teach online for the EGF in the EGF Academy.

He has also contributed lectures to Guo Juan’s Internet Go School.

Administrative activities

He was President of the Romanian Go Federation from 2008 until 2011.

In 2014 Taranu ran for the European Go Federation presidency. In a letter sent to the official mailing list for EGF members, he explained the reasons for this move, which he would not normally have made: he was dissatisfied by the handling of various things, particularly a contract with CEGO and the introduction of the European professional league, where Ondrej Silt was barred from the first qualifications in 2014.

Publications

Author of Top European Players Training

Further reading

• Interview with Catalin Taranu, by Pieter Mioch.
• Nihon Ki-in player profile
• Interview by local media
• EGD page: https://www.europeangodatabase.eu/EGD/Player_Card.php?&key=10586785