Kensuke Kitahama

Kensuke Kitahama (北浜 健介, Kitahama Kensuke; born December 28, 1975) is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 8-dan.^[1]

Kensuke Kitahama
Kitahama at a November 2019 human shogi [ja] event in Himeji, Japan.
Native name	北浜健介
Born	(1975-12-28) December 28, 1975 (age 49)
Hometown	Ebina, Kanagawa
Nationality	Japanese
Career
Achieved professional status	April 1, 1994(1994-04-01) (aged 18)
Badge Number	211
Rank	8-dan
Teacher	Yoshimasa Saeki [ja] (9-dan)
Meijin class	B2
Ryūō class	5
Websites
JSA profile page

Early life, amateur shogi and apprenticeship

Kensuke Kitahama was born in Ebina, Kanagawa on December 28, 1975.^[2] As a sixth-grade elementary school student, he finished runner-up to Kōsuke Tamura in the 12th Elementary Student Meijin Tournament [ja] in 1987.^[3][4]

In September 1988, Kitahama entered the Japan Shogi Association's apprentice school at the rank of 6-kyū under the sponsorship of shogi professional Yoshimasa Saeki [ja]. He was promoted to 1-dan in 1992 and obtained full professional status and the rank of 4-dan in April 1994.^[5]

Shogi professional

Promotion history

The promotion history for Kitahama is as follows:^[6]

• 6-kyū: 1988
• 1-dan: 1992
• 4-dan: April 1, 1994
• 5-dan: April 1, 1996
• 6-dan: April 1, 1998
• 7-dan: April 1, 2003
• 8-dan: March 7, 2013

Personal life

Kitahama graduated from Waseda University in 2000.^[7]