TOKYO, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Sumire Nakamura, a fourth-grade girl, will be recognized as the youngest professional Go player in Japan, the country's Go Association said Saturday.
Nakamura will be 10 years old when she officially becomes a professional and joins the lowest rank "shodan" on April 1.
She is set to break the record set by Rina Fujisawa, who became a professional player at 11 years and 6 months old nine years ago.
Fujisawa won Women's Honinbo competition in 2018.
Nakamura was chosen by the Japan Go Association to train as a professional Go player to compete on a par against Chinese and Korean players in international competitions.
The Tokyo-born youngster started playing the traditional board game when she was three years old. Her 45-year-old father is also a professional player and currently holds a ninth-degree.
Nakamura, who now lives in Osaka, participated in Japan's national tournament for boys and girls when she was in second grade and most recently returned from South Korea after receiving some training.
