Zhiying Yu: From Prodigy to Pillar of Modern Go
Zhiying Yu was born on 23 November 1997 in Wuxi, Jiangsu, China. She turned professional in 2010 and was promoted to 8-dan in 2023.
According to the GoRatings list of 1 January 2025, she ranked 9th among female players worldwide, with a rating of 3252 (GoRatings). Her continuous presence among the world’s top women players underscores her status as one of the most enduring and elite figures in contemporary Go.
From Wuxi Prodigy to National Champion
Zhiying Yu’s rise began early. At just 12 years old, she captured both the women’s individual and mixed-doubles gold medals at the National Mind Sports Games.
At 15, she delivered four consecutive victories in the Bailing Cup China Women’s Veterans Ring Match, instantly attracting national attention and earning media nicknames such as “Go Queen” and “Genius Go Girl.”
As a child, she was lively and energetic. Her parents enrolled her in various enrichment classes hoping to broaden her horizons—an unintentionally pivotal decision that revealed her extraordinary talent for Go.
Her instructor famously described her as “a genius among geniuses,” encouraging her parents to seek a larger stage for her future development.
Training in Beijing: A World Much Larger Than Expected
To fully explore her potential, Zhiying Yu’s parents made the ambitious decision to send eight-year-old Yu to a professional Go academy in Beijing. She left Wuxi with a simple love for the game and entered a world defined by intensity and high-level competition.
The adjustment was challenging.
For the first time, she encountered opponents significantly stronger than herself. Losses became frequent, tears common, and determination essential. She often spent more than eight hours a day training—endless matches, deep reviews, and rigorous focus.
The effort soon bore fruit.
At 12, she shocked the Go community by defeating world champion Chang Hao 9-dan and long-time women’s leader Zhang Xuan 8-dan, securing two gold medals at the 2009 National Mind Sports Games and earning her place on the Chinese National Go Team.
Setbacks, Growth, and World-Level Breakthroughs
In 2013, Zhiying Yu reached her first world final at the Bingsheng Cup at only 16. A single miscalculation under the pressure of nerves cost her the world title. The emotional impact was heavy—so much so that she avoided reviewing the game for a long time.
Yet this setback became the catalyst for transformation.
Through deliberate mental training and accumulated experience, she rebuilt her confidence and composure.
Her breakthrough arrived in 2014, when she won two consecutive world titles:
the World Mind Sports Games Women’s Go Event, and
the 2nd World Women’s Go Championship.
These victories firmly re-established her on the global stage.
Her competitive strength shone further in the 2015 Samsung Cup, where the 18-year-old Zhiying Yu—facing world champion Choi Cheolhan 9-dan—reversed a losing position with sharp reading and decisive judgment, securing a narrow yet iconic win. The match challenged outdated assumptions about gender in top-level Go.
Years later, she contributed to China’s historic gold medal in the Women’s Team Go event at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, marking both a personal triumph and a milestone moment for Chinese Go.
Steady Maturity and a Growing Public Presence
As Zhiying Yu matured, so did her style. Her play has become calm, balanced, and strategically precise. Reflecting on her early competitive years, she acknowledged that her intense desire to win sometimes made losses painful. Over time, she adopted a healthier, more resilient mindset:
“The more one fears losing, the more likely one is to lose.”
This philosophy supported a new phase of stability and consistency, solidifying her position as the leading active female Go player in China.
By January 2025, she remained 9th in the world among women (GoRatings), continuing a long-standing tenure among the global elite.
Beyond competition, Zhiying Yu has also become a visible figure in Go education and outreach.
She has opened accounts on platforms such as Xiaohongshu (RED), where she shares:
Go tutorials,
game commentary,
insights into professional thinking,
mindset and training advice, and
accessible content for beginners.
Her friendly, clear teaching style has attracted a growing audience, helping introduce the ancient game to a new generation of digital-native learners. Her involvement reflects a broader trend of modern professionals expanding their impact into community building and public education.
