＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49) on X
<Added June 1, 2023> Six-time champion Sota Fujii won the Meijin title match, becoming the youngest player in history to win seven titles! Congratulations!
In the fifth game of the Meijin title match, the oldest of shogi’s eight major titles, challenger Sota Fujii (20), who holds six titles, defeated Meijin Akira Watanabe (39), leading to a 4-1 record and becoming the youngest player in history to win the Meijin title.
He also became only the second player in history to achieve seven titles, following Yoshiharu Habu (52), breaking the record for the youngest player to do so.
<Added May 24, 2023> Doel’s “Panda” cake is also popular with female shogi spectators!
On the first day of the third game of the Meijin title match on May 13, Fujii enjoyed a “Panda” cake from Doel, a French pastry shop in Takatsuki City, Osaka Prefecture. According to a shop owner, “After Fujii tried it, we were inundated with inquiries. When we told them we couldn’t order it online, some customers even said they would get on the Shinkansen to buy it. It’s truly the Fujii effect.”
According to a public relations representative for ABEMA, which broadcasts shogi online, the number of viewers has more than tripled since the shogi channel launched in February 2017. This is due to the popularity of Fujii Souta and the increase in shogi spectators.
This “spectator shogi” refers to the enjoyment of “watching” shogi, rather than “playing” it. According to shogi writer Matsumoto Hirofumi, the rise of the internet and Fujii Souta’s popularity has led to an increase in the number of spectators who enjoy watching shogi.
There are particularly many female fans, who pay close attention to what Fujii has eaten, and snacks and other items become so popular that they often sell out.
(From the May 24, 2023, episode of “Oshita Yoko Wide! Scramble”)
<Added 5/22/2023> Six-time Meijin champion Sota Fujii is now 3-1 against Meijin Akira Watanabe in the Meijin title match, putting him one step closer to becoming the youngest Meijin and the second player in history to win all seven titles.
The fourth game of the 81st Meijin title match (sponsored by Asahi Shimbun and Mainichi Shimbun) was held on May 21-22 in Iizuka City, Fukuoka Prefecture. Challenger Sota Fujii (20), Ryuo (O-i, Eio, Ki-o, Osho, Kisei), defeated Meijin Akira Watanabe (39) in 69 moves to finish the series at 3-1, putting him one step closer to becoming the youngest Meijin and the second player in history to win all seven titles. The fifth game will be played from May 31 to June 1 in Takayama Village, Nagano Prefecture.
<Added on 5/13/2023> Ryuo Fujii Sota’s afternoon sweet treat for the “Meijin Tournament Game 3” in Takatsuki City was Doel’s “Panda”
The third game of the 81st Meijin title match, in which shogi player Ryuo Fujii Souta (Oi, Eio, Kio, Osho, and Kisei, 20) challenges Meijin Akira Watanabe (39), began on May 13 at the Takatsuki Castle Park Arts and Culture Theater in Takatsuki City, Osaka Prefecture. At 3:00 PM, snacks were served for both players.
Fujii ordered Doel’s “White Chocolate Mousse Cake (Panda)” and “Lemonade and Soda” (pictured above). The “Panda” is a cute-looking panda cake with a bitter chocolate interior and a white chocolate mousse exterior.
Fujii’s previous cute sweets, such as “Piyorin Ice Cream,” “Korokoro Shiba-chan,” and “Kuma Monaka,” have often been talked about, but I’m sure the “Panda” will be just as popular.
By the way, “Doel” is a shop in Takatsuki City that I highly recommend as a truly delicious cake shop.
<Added on March 19, 2023> Five-time champion Fujii Souta defeated two-time champion Watanabe Akira in the Kiō Championship to become the second player in history to win six titles! He also broke the previous record (24 years and 2 months) held by 9-dan player Habu (20 years and 8 months) as the youngest player to hold six titles!
The fourth game of the best-of-five “48th Kiō Championship Konami Group Cup (sponsored by Hokuriku Shimbun)” between shogi champion Kiō player Watanabe Akira (38) (who holds two titles, including Meijin) and five-time champion Fujii Souta (20) (Ryuō, Ōza, Eio, Ōsho, and Kisei) was played on March 19th at the Nikko Kinugawa Spa Hotel Mikazuki in Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture. Playing black, Fujii won the fierce battle after 132 moves, winning 3-1 to claim the Kiō title.
Fujii is now the second player in history, following 9-dan Habu Yoshiharu, to hold six titles simultaneously, and the youngest player to do so.
The “Best of Seven Meijin Championship,” with seven titles at stake, will begin on April 5th. Will Meijin Akira Watanabe, who holds only one title, defend his title and stand in the way of Fujii’s path to becoming an “eight-crown champion,” or will Osho Fujii force Watanabe into a titleless state? This title match will be a turning point in history.
Fujii, who holds six titles, also won the NHK Cup Tournament for the first time, defeating 8-dan Yuki Sasaki (28) in the final. As a result, he has now won all four general tournaments (Grand Slams) in 2022: the Shogi Japan Series, Ginga-sen, Asahi Cup, and NHK Cup. This is the first time in history that he has achieved this feat.
<Update: September 7, 2022> Five-time champion Sota Fujii defended his title, becoming the youngest player in history to win double-digit titles at 20 years and 1 month old.
Furthermore, he also broke the record for the youngest and fastest player to win 10 titles, taking just 2 years and 1 month from his first title to his 10th title.
Shogi player Sota Fujii (20) (Ryu-o, Eio, Osho, Kisei, Seto City, Aichi Prefecture) won the fifth game of the seven-game “Oi Ocha Cup 63rd Oi Championship” (sponsored by Chunichi Shimbun and others, specially sponsored by Ito En) held at Heidaji Temple in Makinohara City, Shizuoka Prefecture on the 6th, defeating 9th-dan player Masayuki Toyoshima (32) (from Ichinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture), and defended his title with a record of 4 wins and 1 loss.
<Updated November 13, 2021> Sota Fujii, the O-i, becomes the youngest player in history to win four titles in the Ryuo Championship at the age of 19 years and 3 months.
In the fourth game of the 34th Ryuo Championship (sponsored by the Yomiuri Shimbun), which began on the 12th at a hotel in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, first-time challenger Sota Fujii (19) defeated Ryuo Masayuki Toyoshima (31) in 122 moves on the 13th, achieving his fourth consecutive victory and taking the Ryuo title. Having just captured the Eio title from Toyoshima in September, Fujii, who also defended the O-i and Kisei titles this summer, now holds half of the eight current titles, surpassing Akira Watanabe (37), who holds the triple crown of Meijin, Osho, and Kiō, to become the most crowned active player.
<Added August 20, 2020> Sota Fujii, the Kisei, wins the “O-i” title and is promoted to 8th dan.
Fujii won the fourth game of the “O-i” match held from August 19th to 20th, 2020, and with four consecutive wins, he became the youngest player in history to win the “O-i” title. He also became the youngest player ever to be promoted to 8th dan. Congratulations! !
On July 16, 2020, Sota Fujii (2002-), a genius high school shogi player, became the youngest player ever to win the “Kisei” title.
He had been gaining attention since last year, but his popularity has skyrocketed since winning his first title.
Today, we’d like to introduce some popular “Souta Fujii merchandise.”
1. Souta Fujii “Official Merchandise”
(1) Shogi Training with Souta Fujii – Switch
(2) Souta Fujii Fan “Taishi”
2. Recommended Books Related to Sota Fujii
(1) “The Thinking Method of Sota Fujii, the Frustrated Pupil” by Masataka Sugimoto
(2) Masataka Sugimoto, “How My Student, Sota Fujii, Learns”
(3) “Souta Fujii: The Boy Who Surpasses the Masters” by Shoji Tsue
(4) Nozawa Nobuyuki, “Master and Disciple: The Transmission of the Spirit of Shogi Players”
