Shinjin-O

The Shinjin-O ("King of the New Stars") is Japan's premier championship for young professional Go players, held annually since 1976. The age cap was tightened from 30 to 25 in 2006, and from the 33rd edition (2008) the dan limit was further restricted to 6-dan and below, reflecting the increasingly young age at which top players peak. It uses a single-elimination format with the final decided in a best-of-three match. Winning the Shinjin-O is often seen as a career milestone signalling a young player's readiness to compete for major titles.