On October 27, 2024, the final round of the 2024 Leju Le Cup Chinese Go League regular season concluded with Chengdu Yijin Holdings defeating Minsheng Credit Card Beijing Team 4-0 at their home ground. This victory secured Chengdu the championship title of the regular season, earning them a spot in the playoffs.
In an interview after the match, Chengdu’s head coach Li Liang reflected on the team’s dramatic turnaround from last season, where they unexpectedly fell into the relegation group in the final round. “The players felt really frustrated about that outcome,” Li shared. “This year, we motivated each other to strive for excellent results.”
The regular season this year saw a significant rule change, with the elimination of the leading player system. Before the final match, the team’s key players, Dang Yifei and rising star Tu Xiaoyu, both had impressive records of 12 wins and 2 losses. Tu Xiaoyu also achieved the rank of 9-dan during the current league season, making him the 59th 9-dan expert in Chinese Go history.
As the last round unfolded, Chengdu took an early lead with Xie Erhao securing a win against Xu Yidi in a mid-game victory. Following that, Liao Yuanhe, Dang Yifei, and Tu Xiaoyu all triumphed over Beijing’s Zheng Zaixiang, Tong Mengcheng, and Chen Haoxin, sealing the team’s dominant performance.
Looking ahead, Li Liang emphasized the team’s ambitions: “Regardless of who our next opponents are, our goal is to challenge for the championship of this season’s Go League.”
