The 28th European Youth Go Championship took place at Hacettepe University between March 22-25, 2023. Around 90 young go players from 12 European countries competed to become European Champions in under-20, under-16, and under-12 age categories at the championship, which was co-organized by Hacettepe University Go Club, Turkish Go Players Association, and European Go Federation. During the championship, side events such as individual open go tournament and pair go tournament were also organized. Throughout the championship, in addition to European young players, parents of the players and national team representatives were also present at Hacettepe.
As a result of six rounds of matches that took place over three days, Alper Sulak from Turkey in the under-12 category, Vsevolod Ovsiienko from Ukraine in the under-16 category, and Deniz Dobranis from Romania in the under-20 category each won first place and earned the title of European Champion in their respective categories.
Go is a Far Eastern strategy game with origins dating back 2500 years, played between two players using black and white stones. In the game of Go, players take turns placing black and white stones on the Go board, striving to gain more territory. Go is a popular game played by millions of people worldwide, and official Go tournaments are held in many countries. In Turkey, Go has become increasingly popular in recent years, and Turkey has risen to fourth place among European countries in terms of active player numbers. The Turkish Go Players Association, founded in 1995, and the Go Club at Hacettepe University, established in 2000, are working to promote the game of Go in Turkey.
The European Youth Go Championship, held annually in a different European country, has special significance this year, taking place in Turkey, where dozens of young players have participated in numerous Go tournaments, and under the roof of Hacettepe University. The successful organization of the tournament has raised expectations for more international tournaments across Europe to be held in Turkey in the coming years. Moreover, the championship marks an important achievement for Turkish Go, with a Turkish player becoming European Champion for the first time (Alper Sulak, under-12 category) and a third-place finish in Europe in the under-20 category (Ufuk Emre Yıldırım, under-20 category).
The championship results and the official website of the championship can be accessed at the following address:
