Manfred Wimmer ( 1944 – 1995) was the first Western professional Go player.
Manfred Wimmer was born in Austria in 1944. He won the European Go Championship in 1969 and 1974. He became a professional shodan in the Kansai Ki-In on January 26, 1978 (shortly before James Kerwin, the American who became the second Western Go professional on February 14, 1978, in the Nihon Kiin). Wimmer was promoted to the rank of 2p the same year (though gobase.org lists him as a 1p).Gobase.org listing of Manfred Wimmer
In 1991, he introduced the game of Go in Madagascar and, around the same time, reportedly in Kenya.Early go in Madagascar, at South African Go Club Wimmer died of a stroke in Vienna in 1995 while playing Go at a cafe."Obituary of Manfred Wimmer" (European Go Federation)
See also European Go Players European Go Federation References
External links Pok's "a kind of obituary" of Manfred Wimmer Senseis Library page on Manfred Wimmer