The European Go Congress 2024 feels like it is played at the end of the earth. The venue is beautiful, but it is an oasis in a sea of industries. On Saturday and Sunday, you had to go by bus for about half an hour in order to encounter an open restaurant, and I am living relatively nearby, at a hotel in the middle of an industrial area that stretches on for… ever. Nah, I am exaggerating a bit, but things did not come off to a great start here. Circumstances conspired against the organizers, and they did not get a handful, but rather three. The first round was ninety minutes late, possibly due to the sabotage to the french telecom system, and the pairings were different on the lists that were posted compared to those on the web. First I thought I had not been paired at all, but I was (I expected to be lower down… in a rare moment of humbleness). A friend of mine was not paired at all, and somehow he was not paired in the second round either, but they solved that, and paired him against someone at the last moment. (Well done.) The streams have been struggling with the networks, and the microphones crackles like nothing I have ever heard before. The temperature has been hovering between 30 and 40 C. Yet, some things are amazingly good. Like the sandwich I bought yesterday. I am now twice as convinced that the French understand the concept of bread better than any other nation on earth. The staff is doing their best, and with a fair amount of competence too. The top group plays in two rooms, and one of them apparently smells like ****, but it seems to be the only room with this special feature.

In the third round I was paired against a 4dan that – I learnt later – is a ”legendary go teacher” in France. I played one of my best games to date:

On the Wednesday Sweden’s super-strong 7-dan, Fredrik Blomback, had to win against the top seed Dai Junfu 8d, in order to stay in the race for the European Championship, and he succeded. If he wins tomorrow he will reach the quarter-final of the European Championship. I will get another strong opponent and yet another wonderful game of go. Sleeping will be a challenge when there is so much to look forward to.