Enjoy this review of a recent match in the Super Jackpot of the 1st Backgammon Festival in Aachen Germany in August 2024 between two of the world’s strongest women players, Akiko Yazawa from Japan and Josefin Bichler from Germany. They played at a nearly flawless World Class level, both with 3 Performance Ratings. Grandmaster Marty Storer moderates the review, providing his insights. Josefin and Akiko share their thinking over the board and after reflecting on the eXtreme Gammon analysis of 20 interesting positions. Josefin joined the discussion in a Zoom session sponsored by the Women’s World of Backgammon (WWB). Written comments from Akiko Yazawa from Japan were read by WWB Board member Irina Litzenberger.
Highlights of Josefin Bichler’s recent tournament successes include winning the 2022 Merit Open in Cyprus doubles event in a field of 185 teams with backgammon partner Will Cockerell from England as well as reaching the semifinal of the Last Chance Championship flight. In 2023 she came in fourth at the Nordic Open. She’s had a great year in 2024reaching the Final in Speedgammon in Gibraltar, winning the Super Jackpot in Beaulieu, and then taking home three trophies in Bad Dürkheim Germany: semifinal Doubles (with Thomas Kazemieh), second place in the Main, and winning the Super Jackpot.
Akiko Yazawa has appeared on the Giants of Backgammon list 5 times, starting in 2013, ranking as high as 3rd in 2015. She reached the pinnacle of backgammon, winning the Backgammon World Championship in Monte Carlo in 2014, and then again in 2018. Akiko has won numerous events in Europe, Japan, and the U.S.A., including the prestigious Dual-Duel event in San Antonio Texas in 2013 and back-to-back victories in the Monte Carlo Super Jackpot in 2012 and 2013. In 2024 she won the Merit Open in Montenegro, finished runner-up at the World Doubles Championships with backgammon partner Andreas Bünz from Germany in Aachen Germany, and third at the Merit Open Middle East Invitational in Cyprus.
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