From: Reijer Grimbergen ETL GO JP> Date: 1 oct 1996 Subject: Free class rules In this week's Shukan Shogi there are also some new (or perhaps sometimes old) rules described regarding the mysterious free class. The rules are very complex and the translation below is only a first try. Any Japanese reader of Shukan Shogi who can fill in the blanks or correct my mistakes, please feel free to help me (and the readers) to figure out the rules of the free class: 1) It is from now on also possible to enter the free class from the sandan league. A player who has been runner-up twice to the two regular promoted players from the sandanleague can, if he wishes, be promoted to 4-dan and enter the free class. However, if he wishes to stay in the sandan league, this is also allowed. 2) From the free class it is not possible to return to C2 whenever one wishes (as I previously thought). A free class professional has to play at least 30 official games in a year and have a winning average of 60% or higher. If a player plays more than 30 games a year, he may choose the best 30, but then he needs a percentage of 65% or higher. If a free class professional fails to meet that requirement for ten years, he will lose his status of free class professional and will be forced to retire from professional shogi. 3) After a 3-dan turns 26, he is allowed to continue to play in the sandan league for at most five more tournaments (two and a half years). Also, the age limit for reaching 1-dan has been lifted from 21 years to 23 years old. 4) It is now allowed to do the Shoreikan entering exam until you are 22 years old. However, if you are older than 20, you will have to be the winner or the runner-up in a big national amateur tournament like the Ama-Meijin, Ama-Ryu-O or the like. If my translation of these rules are correct, then it seems that the Renmei has realised that the previous rules were a bit tough on the Shoreikai players when compared to actual professionals in C2. Increasing the age limit and giving 3-dan players an alternative (albeit very difficult route) to C2, might help more young players into the professional ranks. On the other, it seems that for professionals who enter the free class (and I do not know better than that they do so voluntarily), the professional career is virtually over. Winning more than 60% of the games is difficult for any professional, let alone for a professional almost dropping out of C2. To me one question remains: what is the status of a professional like Wakamatsu or Honma, who are not in the "free class", but do not seem to retire? Anyone out there who knows the answer to this question that has been bothering me for quite some time? Reijer -- Reijer Grimbergen Electrotechnical Laboratory Palcious Tsukuba 302 1-1-4 Umezono 1-24-8 Ninomiya Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken 305 JAPAN 305 JAPAN E-mail: grimberg etl go jp Tel: 0298-59-1606 WWW: http://www.etl.go.jp:8080/etl/suiron/~grimberg Tel: +81-(0)298-54-5080 extension: 67431 Fax: +81-(0)298-58-5918