Asahi Amateur Meijin

Japan's premier amateur title, run by the Asahi Shimbun and the Nihon Ki-in since 2006 as the successor to the Asahi Amateur Top-Ten (朝日アマ チュア囲碁十傑戦, 1961-2005). From its second edition it adopted a challenger format borrowed from the professional titles: a national tournament produces one challenger, who then faces the sitting holder over a best-of-three at the Nihon Ki-in's Tokyo headquarters. The field is strong enough that its champions regularly beat professionals in Kisei preliminaries, and the winner earns Japan's seat at the World Amateur Go Championship. Distinct from the older All-Japan Amateur Meijin (全日本アマチュア名人戦), which dates to the 1950s.