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Meet Joanne Missingham, Taiwan’s Goddess of Go: Part 3
Tonight we give you the third and final installment in our in-depth feature on Joanne Missingham, Taiwan’s top female Go player. We pick up with her mother’s death from cancer, which dealt a devastating blow to Joanne. For eight months, she was unable to play the game she loved. But when she did emerge from her grief, her career took off in ways she could never have imagined. Join us for the journey in our Sunday special report.
Early summer, 2014. Joanne’s mother, Hei Nan-ping, feels unwell. At first, she thought she’d just caught a cold. But medical tests revealed it was very serious. She had acute leukemia.
Hsuan-hsuan Missingham
Sister of Joanne Missingham
It’s scary to hear the word “cancer.” I thought, in that situation, I should be able to comfort her. But, actually, she comforted me. She said, “Don’t worry.” “Carry on with your studies in the U.S.” “People will take care of mom in Taiwan.”
Joanne’s dad and sister came to join them in Taiwan. The whole family took turns caring for Nan-ping, whose health rapidly deteriorated. She passed away after 10 months of treatment.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
I brought things that I had learned in Go into my life. For example, I can respond calmly to whatever I meet in life. Immediately, I think about how to resolve this problem that has appeared. I don’t get panicky or anxious about the problem.
Chou Chun-hsun
The “Red-faced Go Master”
I think her mom wasn’t just a mom. They were like friends. She was her mom and her friend, her best partner. Because, when Joanne came back to Asia to train, her mom was almost always by her side. In Taiwan and in China, every day, Joanne always faced the pressure of Go games, and the pain of defeats. Her greatest spiritual support was her mom. So, losing her mom was a great blow.
After Nan-ping’s death, Joanne’s father and sister returned to the U.S. leaving Joanne by herself in Taiwan. But she didn’t have a trusted confidante. At one time, she turned away from Go,and withdrew into herself.
Hsuan-hsuan Missingham
Sister of Joanne Missingham
She didn’t compete for eight long months. It was a big deal. Perhaps, in those conditions, she couldn’t calm herself down enough to play Go.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
I fell into a long low period, I suppose. Before that, I guess I was someone who was taken great care of by my mom. My mom arranged my whole schedule for me, and helped me manage everything. So, when she was gone, it was very hard to bear, but also, I felt forced to grow up. After that, I had to find a way to manage everything for myself.
After almost a year of quitting, Joanne gradually emerged from her sorrow. In 2015, she began to retrace her steps on the international Go circuit and to win. She finally gained the 7 dan ranking, making her Taiwan’s highest-ranked female player.
In 2016, Joanne and Chen Shih-yuan represented Taiwan as a doubles team at the World Cup in Japan. They made a splash in the world of Go, and were on the cover of an airline magazine. Suddenly, Joanne was spotted by a talent scout. Her stardom was about to grow.
Felix Wu
Seed Music chair
I was on a flight back to Taiwan, and I saw her interview in the airline magazine. I looked at how the photo was taken, and thought, “It looks like she doesn’t have an agent.” The photo made her look sort of mature and foxy. But that’s not how I saw her, at all. I guessed she didn’t have an agent to help her with the entertainment business. So, straight away, I asked some of our people to get in touch with her Go association.
In late 2016, Joanne entered the world of entertainment, a whole new realm. She was a newbie in show business, but her sweetness and beauty and Go fame quickly won her contracts as an ambassador for scooters, cosmetics, and video games.
Felix Wu
Seed Music chair
I thought it was just a matter of time. She was always going to be discovered by the media. and become famous across Asia. And that’s what happened. But if nobody had helped her manage it… She told me, “When I head out to Go matches,” “it’s dawn, I don’t have time for styling my hair.” I said, “You need to pay attention to this.” Because she’s representing the whole of Taiwan, it’s even about Taiwan’s image. Someone needs to help her manage it. We’re just helping her with that.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
The day before the shoot, I went to a posing class. The teacher gave me some hints on how to pose. At first, I felt a bit out of place, a bit nervous. But the photographer guided me, made me laugh. So then I started to relax.
With support and promotion from her agency, Joanne was inundated with work. But she didn’t get complacent. Rather, it brought out her unique humility.
Felix Wu
Seed Music chair
She doesn’t particularly want to, for example, capture the Taiwan market, and then become the queen of Asia, or the world, the universe. No, she just wants to be herself. If work comes to her, and she likes it, then she does it, not because it’s a big pay jump or a big upgrade in status. She’s never like that. Most of the time, she’s running away from it. I think, to this day, the entertainment industry is not her top priority. It’s still Go.
Go always comes first. In 2019, Joanne competed at the Senko Cup in Japan. After four days sparring with the world’s best, she reached the semifinals, winning bronze.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
When we play Go, and we choose a move, we should be thinking about 10 or 15 moves ahead. You need to consider the possibilities. If I do this, they might go here, here, or here. Maybe there are three options. You calculate what could play out for all three.
With her earnest yet lively expressions, Joanne became a darling of Japanese media. She was dubbed the “Once-in-a-Millenium Go Beauty.”
As her popularity in Japan skyrocketed, she was hired as a cast member on an NHK show, teaching Go.
Hsieh Yi-min
Go player based in Japan
Joanne isn’t just beautiful. She’s great at Go. So I think it’s natural that she gets attention. On that NHK show, they had a segment of just a few minutes, where she explained Go tactics. I remember, lots of people would watch that. People who played Go, and people who didn’t!
After working in Japan, she returned to Taiwan, and got many bookings to model for fashion brands and magazine covers. Her show business career entered a new phase.
In 2020, aged 26, she made her first outing on the big screen in “My Missing Valentine,” playing a colleague of the lead at the post office.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
I’ve learned a lot through performing. Maybe in the past, because of Go, I got used to suppressing my emotions. I would press them down, both good and bad emotions. I thought I couldn’t have emotions. But now I remember them. For example, if I feel a bit disturbed inside, then I remember that feeling. I think, “I can use this in acting one day.”
Joanne wants to give back to the world of Go. As her career has progressed, she’s dedicated herself to Go education. In 2021, she opened an online Go studio under the name “Teacher Chia-chia.”
Joanne was part of Team Taiwan once more at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. At the age of 28, she is already a pro Go player, a representative of Taiwan, an actor and entrepreneur.
Joanne Missingham
Taiwan Go player
My biggest wish is to introduce more people to Go. I think Go is still quite niche in Taiwan. Not many people really understand it. When people think of Go, they think, “It must be so hard.” “You have to be a genius to play it.” But, actually, the basic rules are very simple. It’s easy for anyone to start playing.
Life is always changing, just like a good game of Go. Joanne lives by one of the “10 Maxims of Go,” “Do Not Covet Victory.” Her careful courage and understanding of loss see her advance slowly but surely on her own path.
For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53
2024-06-23
