Pole first woman to join pro 'shogi' training course

The first foreign woman to be accepted into the professional female “shogi” training program is from Poland, the Japan Shogi Association has revealed.

Karolina Styczynska, a 22-year-old college student, was entitled to join the Kenshukai training program’s C2 class after recording three wins and five losses in eight matches since May, the association said Sunday. She plans to join the program after graduating in September.

If she is promoted to the C1 class and fulfills the performance requirements, she will become a professional player of the chesslike board game. Styczynska said she still has a long way to go to become a pro shogi player, but will not give up her dream.

She first came across shogi five years ago when reading “Naruto,” a popular comic book, and has been improving her skills online ever since.

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