Kim Da-bin

Kim Da-bin (Hangul: 정유진; Hanja: 鄭有珍, b. 1 Mar 2001, Seoul) is a Korean professional 3 dan. He became a professional relatively late in life when he was 22, after years as a strong amateur. But his winning pro record led to rapid promotion to 3p in only 16 months.

Table of contents Family and coaches Amateur career Promotion history Career highlights Links Photos

Family and coaches

Kim Da-bin is the son of Kim Cheon-sik and Jeong Ji-ae, and he has an older sister. He trained to become a professional at the Chungam Baduk school. His instructors were Yoo Chang-hyeok 9p, Choi Won-yong 8p, and Kim Dae-yong 6p. His favorite player is Choi Gyu-byeong 9p.

Amateur career

• 2019: Won the right to represent Korea in the 39th World Amateur Baduk Championship
• 2021: 3rd place with +5–1 in 41st World Amateur Baduk Championships
• 2022: Won Incheon Mayor’s Cup Junior Division
• 2022: Runner-up, 1004 Islands Shinan National Strongest Division

Promotion history

• 3 dan / 2024.07.11 / 3rd dan promotion
• 2 dan / 2023.08.28 / 2nd tier promotion
• 1 dan / 2023.03.10 / 154th General Entrance Competition

In the 154th General Entrance Competition, the five who were promoted were all in their 20s: Lee Sang-bin (27), Lee Jung-jun (25), Kim Jung-hyun younger (24), Eom Dong-geon (23), and Kim Da-bin (22).

Career highlights

• 2025: Winner of 6th Leebong Cup, his first professional title. He beat Japan’s “genius girl” Nakamura Sumire 4p 2–1 in the final on 13 Mar. This was their first official game. In the Korean March rankings, Kim Da-bin 3p is ranked 51st, and Sumire 4p is ranked 114th.

According to a report:

Kim Da-bin, 3rd Dan, won the Lee Boong-bae Rookie Highest Ranking Tournament, earning his first title since joining the professional ranks.

In the third game of the final held at the Pangyo K-Baduk Studio on the 13th, 3-dan Kim Da-bin won 2–1 against 4-dan Sumire, claiming the ultimate victory.

In the first game, in a fierce battle for half a stone, Kim Da-bin, 3rd Dan, took advantage of Sumire, 4th Dan's mistake and won by 3 and a half stones against white. In the second game, which continued 5 minutes later, Sumire, 4th Dan, showed off her brilliant reading skills in the battle of the stones and won by white's 188 moves.

In the final game, 3-dan Kim Da-bin maintained his lead after scoring a big point in the early right-hand battle, and won by a white resignation in 218 moves to secure the victory.

Kim Da-bin 3-dan said:

I think the Lee Boong-bae is a tournament that I am truly grateful for as a late-comer like me. I know that opportunities like this don’t come often, so I am very happy about this win. I want to show a better performance in many competitions in the future, and especially advance to the main tournament in many overall games. I have lost many times in the past because I fell at crucial moments, but I am happy that I overcame them in this tournament.

Links

• Korean Wikipedia
• KBA
• Go4Go
• Go Ratings and Games

Photos

Kim Da-bin (left), winner of 6th Leebong cup, with runner up Nakamura Sumire, 2025.03.13 (Image credit: m.baduk.or.kr