Akira Nishio

Akira Nishio is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 7-dan. He is a former executive director of the Japan Shogi Association.
Nishio introduces shogi theory in the English language through his blog Shogi Openings and his occasional posts on Facebook.

𝕏 nishio1979

Early life

Nishio was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture on September 30, 1979. He finished runner up in the in 1988 as a third-grade elementary school student, and made the semi-finals of the same tournament two years later.
In September 1990, Nishio entered the Japan Shogi Association's apprentice school at the rank of 6-kyū under the guidance of shogi professional Teruichi Aono. He was promoted to the rank of 1-dan in 1995, and obtained full professional status and the rank of 4-dan in April 2003 after finishing runner up in the 32nd 3-dan League with a record of 11 wins and 7 losses.

Shogi professional

Promotion history

Nishio's promotion history is as follows:

6-kyū: September 1990
1-dan: 1995
4-dan: April 1, 2003
5-dan: September 18, 2007
6-dan: April 21, 2011
7-dan: February 13, 2019

JSA director

Nishio was elected to the Japan Shogi Association's board of directors for a two-year term as an executive director in June 2019. He was re-elected to additional two-year terms in June 2021 and June 2023.