World Champions Japan-Czech!

How they became World Champions!

私は世界チャンピオンだ (I am a world champion; at least I hope this is what it says )

The 1st Transnational World Youth Congress was held in Istanbul, which is partly European and partly Asian.
So we participated with one Asian pair (Japanese pair Hiroaki Miura and Noriaki Koike) and one European pair (Czech pair Milan Macura and Michal Kopecky) . Team Japan-Czech!

The pairs never met, they only knew each other from BBO where Hiroaki asked for team members on his profile. Different culture, different style of players (Japanese players are very disciplined; they hardly show emotions which makes them perfect team players, they also never blame their team mates for anything!). There was mutual respect, both pairs scored well from the beginning. They ended 2nd in the Round Robin, won the quarter finals easily from Poland but then the horror story began...
But first we had to agree on a "yell". The "high five" the Czechs usually use when winning a match was not common to the Japanese so Milan suggested a yell, only used when any of the finals mathces was won. But what to yell? We asked about some Japanese words and agreed on 準々決勝 after winning the quarter finals, on
準決勝 after winning the semi finals and finally on
決勝戦

IF we would win the finals! To he honest it was quite hard to pronounce but Milan got so enthusiastic he wanted to yell 3 times
決勝戦 IF we would really win the finals and two times 準決勝 after the semifinals .

But how to earn that right of these yells?
The semifinals against the Dutch started really bad, half way we were 33 IMPS behind! How to win 34 IMPS in the 2nd half of 16 boards? Well, honestly we needed some help from the Dutch who had one very expensive board where they went one down in the wrong slam, where Milan and Michal duly bid and made the right slam (17 IMPS). For the rest there were no really exciting boards, just trying to stay concentrated and competitive. The unbelievable happened, we won the semifinals on 1 IMP! Huge relief is obvious on all our faces (picture at the desk, just after comparing scores). So we deserved the 2nd yell and as promised we yelled it twice: Djung Kesju, Djung Kesju!!! And you can believe that the exlamatian marks were heard!
For some reasons now the team was stronger than ever: even at 22 behind after 2 out of 3 sets in the finals they went into the rooms confidently for the final set of 16 boards and yes, they did it again! This time even more convincingly with +17 IMPS difference. Hiroaki, Noriaki and I ran to the closed room to meet Milan and Michal who already heard from the Vugraph operator the great news! Wow, the yell, three times Kesju, Kesju, Kesju was also heard three floors higher (closed room was at level -3). The most moving moments were when we climbed the stairs: on top there were many fans, cheering and applauding loudly!
It was and still is so hard to believe; we are so very glad this transnational, even transcontinental (as is Istanbul), team Japan-Czech won the first edition of these World championships!
I am their very very proud captain! I hope this team will play again next year in the White house juniors and of course, I would really like to be their captain again!

What they yelled? Well, I am not even sure the phonetical spelling is OK: djung (djoeng) means half, so djung djung means quarter. Kesju (Kesjoe) is finals so they were only allowed to pronounce these words AFTER they won them. (the repeating Milan wanted was just because the yell would be too short otherwise).

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After the team matches the pairs matches started and after them the party was really complete: the other Czech pair, Magdalena Ticha and Franta Kralik (18 and 19 only!) won GOLD as well (IMP pairs)! All Czech players left with a GOLD medal!

Magda and Franta are on the picture with the Dutch pair Marion Michielsen and Tim Verbeek who very convincingly (5% ahead!) won the MP pairs so two gold medals for the Dutch.
So the national antem of the Czech Republic was heard after all (for transnational teams they do not play national antems), at the price giving to Magda and Franta.

And were the medals real gold? We can see Milan and Marion test them on one of the pictures .

Celebration time for all gold medalists! I am sure they will celebrate much longer!

Ine Gielkens, coach and captain of the Czech Juniors.