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Cuban Delegation Invited to US Go Congress

A delegation of Cuban go players has been invited to attend this year's U.S. Go Congress for the first time and AGA board member Robert Gilman is coordinating fundraising efforts to support the visit. "The Cubans have greeted our invitation with 'immense joy'," Gilman -- who organized the 2013 visit by US players to Cuba (Traveling Board: U.S.-Cuba Friendship Match “A Rare Opportunity”) -- reports, "but the key question is money. Cuba is a poor country, the Cuban internal currency is worthless in the U.S. and the AGA does not have the budget to sponsor the delegation, so we're asking the go community to step up. Cubans have made strong efforts to develop go there, but isolation from the international go community and limited internet have handicapped them. This visit will help them develop and extend bonds with our neighbors to the South." The invitees are  Cuba’s top two players and the president of the Academia Cubana de Go. The video here describes this effort.Contributions can be made through either the AGA or the American Go Foundation (AGF); contributions to the AGF are tax deductible. In either case, put “CC2014” in the memo field, and mail the check to Gilman at  P.O. Box 40020 in Albuquerque, NM 87196-0020. Checks will be acknowledged as they are received but not cashed until its clear the project is a go. If you are contributing, please complete the form here.