Momona Kitamura

This is an interview with Momona Kitamura, the North Tokyo Youth Championship 2018 champion. Momona qualified for the Japan Youth Championship 2018. A tournament Keisuke Fukuchi won, and he then won the World Championship 2018 in Prague. Momona Kitamura is one of many Othello players with a disability. It makes it more difficult to attend tournaments, practice and for some players also difficult to flip discs. This article is to encourage all players to continue to play, to try to reach their dreams and goals.   

WOF: Hi Momona-san! How old are you? あなたは何歳ですか？ 
Momona: 12 years old. 12歳です

WOF: When did you first discover the game of Othello? あなたが最初にオセロに出会ったのはいつですか？
Momona: I think it was around senior class in nursery school. Around 6 years old. 保育所の年長組の頃だと思います。

WOF: Does your family also play Othello? あなたの家族もオセロと遊びますか？
Momona: No, my family doesn’t play Othello so much. →今は、家族はオセロをあまりやりません。

WOF: Has Othello changed your life? オセロに出会ってあなたの人生／生活は変わりましたか？
Momona: Yes! My only pleasure was to play with DS because I can hardly move my body because of a severe disability. Since I started playing Othello, my life has changed completely and Othello has become the core of my life. 
→はい！重度障害者で体をほとんど動かせない私の唯一の楽しみはDSで遊ぶことでした。オセロに出会ってから、生活が一変し、オセロが生活の中心になりました。

WOF: Given your victory, have you inspired other people to try out the game? 桃奈ちゃんの活躍が周りの人に影響を与えたと思いますか？
Momona: I think it is not much of a victory, but I have received attention as the person (Othello player) with disabiltity, and also newspapers and internet news wrote about me, and since then many people have come to talk to me. 
→活躍というほどではないのですが、障害者ということで注目され、新聞に載ったり、ネットニュースにも流れたことで、いろいろな人が声をかけてくれました。

WOF: What other hobbies do you have besides playing Othello? オセロ以外にどんな趣味がありますか？
Momona: Reading books, drawing illustrations, eating delicious food! →読書、イラストを描くこと、おいしいものを食べること

WOF: What are your plans going forward? 今後のオセロについてのあなたの目標は何かありますか？ 
Momona: Now, my current goal is to step up to “3 dan” (It’s an Othello rank in Japan), And In the future, I’m dreaming to win the Lady’s division in the World Othello Championship. →当面の目標は三段昇段。将来の目標は世界選手権女子の部で優勝することです。

WOF: Do you enjoy playing other games? あなたは他のゲームをやっていますか？それは楽しいですか？
Momona: During Othello breaks, I usually look for, and play, various games from Yahoo Kids. 
→オセロの休憩に、Yahoo!キッズで、いろいろなゲームを探してやってます。

WOF: Do you have any tips or words of encouragement for people just getting started with Othello?
オセロを始めたばかりの人に何かヒントや励ましの言葉はありますか
Momona: Never give up even if you lose the game, It’s important to continue patiently. If you set yourself goals and practice a lot, then you will definitely get stronger! 
→負けてもあきらめないで、根気よく続けて行くことが大事。負けた悔しさをバネに、目標を持って努力して行けば、必ず強くなれます！

WOF: What advice should you give others who wish to play Othello, and also attend tournaments, but are not sure they can do that because of their disability? 
同じようなハンディを持った人に何かアドバイスをお願いします。 それから、オセロをやりたい、大会に参加したいと思っている人に何かアドバイスをお願いします。
Momona: Anyone can play Othello! Even for a disabled person who can’t take a sitting position, who can't move their own arms like me, it’s possible to play Othello with a caretaker (^-^). Also even if it is hard to participate in a tournament, you can play with various people on your tablet or PC at home. You can also study Othello at home by watching videos, or solving quizzes. And then when I come to achieve my goal, I am very happy!

It is not easy for me to participate in the tournament but that is also the reason why I am so excited when I get to participate! When I participate in the tournament, it is fun, encouraging, and I can meet many people regardless of age and gender. For playing Othello, It’s very important to do your best at each game, and each move. You can become stronger by doing your best, so let's do our best and not give up at any time (^ - ^)

→オセロは誰でもできます！

私のように、体が不自由で、座位が取れず、腕を動かせなくても、介助者がいればできます(^-^)パソコンやタブレットが使えれば、なかなか大会に参加できなくても、家にいて、いろいろな人と対局できたり、講座を聴いたり、問題を解いたりして、オセロの勉強をすることができます。そして、目標を達成できた時は、すごくうれしいです！

私が大会に参加することは簡単ではありませんが、だからこそ、参加できる時はとてもわくわくします！ 大会に参加すると、年齢や性別を超えて、いろいろ人と知り合うことができて楽しいし、励みになります。 オセロは一戦一戦、一手一手を大事にし、最善を尽くすことで強くなれるので、どんな時でも最後まで勝ちをあきらめず、がんばって行きましょう(^-^)

Interview: Tad Maehata & Daniel Turunen
Picture: Masaya, Harunari, Miyuki and Momona Kitamura