Suffridge to Represent the U.S. at the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG World Championship Tournament Next Month in Tokyo, Japan COLUMBUS, OHIO – July 03, 2005 – After 16 hours of fierce competition, the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME now has its National Champion. Defeating over 480 of the nation’s best Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG players, 20-year-old Max Suffridge from Louisville, Kentucky has not only been recognized as the best of the nation’s best, but as the official “Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG U.S. National Champion.” Suffridge is one of four Duelists representing the United States in next month’s Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG World Championship Tournament in Tokyo, Japan. After going 9-1 in the Swiss rounds, Suffridge plowed through quarterfinals opponent Brent Yetter to advance closer to the title. Suffridge was then pitted against his round nine opponent, 18-year-old Bryan Coronel of Jersey City, New Jersey, in a rematch from the previous day. After again defeating Coronel, he faced Miguel Garcia of Oakland Park, Florida, who played three intense rounds in the final match-up. Using a “Heavy Storm” card (Fury From the Deep Structure Deck) to end the game, Suffridge defeated Garcia member and was crowned national champion. As a semi-finalists, Garcia, Coronel and 18-year-old Jerry Wang (Corona, New York) will join Suffridge in Japan next month to battle over 25 countries for the world championship title. These countries include Japan, Philippines, Australia, Brazil, Switzerland, and Canada to name a few. The Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG World Championship event will be held August 6-7 in Tokyo, Japan. The intense competition -- held over two days at the Origins Gaming Expo in Columbus, Ohio (July 2 and 3) – became a true nationwide event, attracting players from around the U.S. who have come to Columbus from as far as Texas, Hawaii, California, New York, and Florida, to name a few states. All Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG national tournament competitors earned a spot in the U.S. National Championship tournament by competing and winning previous tournaments in their various regions. For more information on decklists, and quarterfinalist participants, please log onto www.upperdeckentertainment.com. The Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG is a product of the KONAMI CORPORATION, and is distributed worldwide (with the exception of Asia) by the Upper Deck Company. About Yu-Gi-Oh!™ The object of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME is to win a Match (which consists of three duels) by reducing an opponent’s “life points” from 8,000 to 0. This is accomplished through a series of turns using a deck with a minimum of 40 cards and a combination of strategy, skill and luck. Three main types of cards are used in the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG: Monster Cards, Spell Cards and Trap Cards, with each category being further divided into sub-categories. For more information on the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME or Upper Deck Entertainment, please visit www.yugioh-card.com or www.ude.com. Konami has shipped over 4 million units of Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) videogames in North America since the series' debut in March 2002, including: Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) Forbidden Memories for Sony PlayStation®, Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) Forbidden Memories Premium Edition for Sony PlayStation®, Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) Dark Duel Stories for Nintendo Game Boy® Color(tm), Yu-Gi-Oh! The Eternal Duelist Soul for Nintendo Game Boy® Advance(tm), Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) Dungeon Dice Monsters for Nintendo Game Boy® Advance(tm), Yu-Gi-Oh!(tm) The Duelists of the Roses for Sony PlayStation® 2, and the recently released Yu-Gi-Oh! Worldwide Edition Stairway to the Destined Duel for Nintendo Game Boy® Advance(tm). The games are recognized for the deeply strategic and challenging gameplay based on the mega-popular Yu-Gi-Oh! universe.
The Yu-Gi-Oh!™ franchise is based on the Yu-Gi-Oh!™ comic series from artist Kazuki Takahashi that first appeared in Japan in 1996. It is currently being serialized in SHONEN JUMP, the monthly manga magazine published by VIZ, LLC. The comic spawned a hit cartoon TV show, a top-selling collectible card game, several videogames and other licensed merchandise. Yu-Gi-Oh!™ follows the adventures of Yugi, a young boy who possesses the "Millennium Puzzle" that allows him to transform into the "Game King" whenever he is challenged.
4Kids Entertainment Inc. manages the merchandising and television rights to Yu-Gi-Oh!™ in the United States. The animated series, Yu-Gi-Oh!™ King of Games, is broadcast eleven times per week on Kids WB.
About The Upper Deck Company
The Upper Deck Co. is a premier global sports and entertainment-publishing company that delivers a portfolio of relevant, innovative and multi-dimensional product experiences to collectors, sports and entertainment enthusiasts. For more information on the Upper Deck Company, please visit www.upperdeck.com.
About Konami Corporation
Konami Corporation is a leading developer, publisher and manufacturer of electronic entertainment properties, specializing in the home video game market. Konami Corporation’s action and adventure titles include the popular franchises Metal Gear Solid®, Silent Hill® and Castlevania®, among other top sellers. The latest information about Konami can be found on the Web at www.konami.com. Konami Corporation is a publicly traded company based in Tokyo, Japan with subsidiary offices, Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. in the US and Konami of Europe in Frankfurt, Germany. Konami Corporation, the parent company of Konami Digital Entertainment is traded in the United States on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol KNM. Details of the products distributed by Konami Digital Entertainment can be found at www.konami.com/usa. |
