The International Go Federation (IGF) is an international organization that connects the various national
Go federations around the world.
Role
The role of the IGF is to promote the sport of Go throughout the world, promote amicable relations among members and improve world go organization. It does so by carrying out the following activities:
Publishing and distributing to members up-to-date information on world Go activities, through bulletins or on the IGF website;
Other activities pertaining to the international development of Go.
Policies
The IGF is an apolitical and non-religious organization, and strives to promote fair play amongst all players.
History
The
Japan Go Association organized the first World Go Amateur Championship in Japan, in 1979. Many of the top Go players from around the world and representatives from the major National Go Associations attended the event. Its success led to the founding of the International Go Federation on March 18, 1982, with Shizuo Asada presiding over the original 29 founding members.
On April 7, 2006, the IGF became a member of the General Association of International Sports Federations (
GAISF).[2]
As of December 2017[update] the IGF has 77 member nations: 39 in Europe, 18 in Asia, 15 in the Americas, 3 in Africa and 2 in Oceania. It also has five Association Members, which cover multiple countries: the World Pair Go Association, the Federación Iberoamericana de Go, the European Go Federation, the Ing Changk Wei-Chi Education Foundation and the Asian Go Federation.[8]
77 Nations in 2023:
39 in Europe: ARM, AUT, AZE, BLR, BEL, BIH, BUL, CRO, CYP, CZE, DEN, FIN, FRA, GEO, GER, HUN, ISL, IRL, ISR, ITA, KAZ, LAT, LTU, LUX, NED, NOR, POL, POR, ROU, RUS, SRB, SVK, SLO, ESP, SWE, SUI, TUR, UKR, GBR
18 in Asia: BRU, CHN, TPE, HKG, IND, INA, IRI, JPN, MAC, MAS, MGL, NEP, PRK, PHI, SIN, KOR, THA, VIE
15 in Americas: ARG, BRA, CAN, CHI, COL, CRC, CUB, ECU, GUA, MEX, PAN, PER, URU, USA, VEN