The following is taken from the 1994 edition of Ranka.

1993 showed an increase in membership and activity for the Irish Go Association. Additionally, we were fortunate to welcome many foreign visitors throughout the course of the year. One highlight was the visit of the professional player Hirano Masaaki 6-dan, who played simultaneous games for an evening.

The 1992 Irish Open Handicap tournament (held every November) was won by John Gibson 5-kyu. The Irish National Championship was expanded to an eight-player challengers’ league, to be further expanded next year. Noel Mitchell 1-dan won the National Championship and represented Ireland in the 15th WAGC, placing 34th. Gerry Mills 1-dan from the U.K. won the Irish Open on tie-break, and David Wickham 9-kyu from the U.K. won the 1993 Irish Handicap Open. We are finally beginning to get a few women players and the 1992 Irish Women’s was won by Naomi Gibson 20-kyu.

There are now two new dan players resident in Ireland in regular contact with us, one from Korea and the other from Japan. With the extra players we’ve gained and the marked improvement in playing strength this year, prospects look good for the year ahead.