Seventeen-year-old Lưu Bách Hoành was named the most valuable player of China’s 2026 top-tier team xiangqi league after leading the individual standings with a 72% scoring rate. Tuổi Trẻ, citing Chao News, reported the award after the competition concluded in Tế Nam, Sơn Đông.
Consistency across an 18-round season
The competition featured 10 teams in a double round-robin over 18 rounds. Representing Thường Thục Văn Lữ, the teenager beat Vạn Khoa and Cố Bác Văn in the first half of the season before adding further notable wins in the return fixtures.
He defeated Yêu Nghị in round 13 and Như Nhất Thuần in round 15. A round-16 victory over Dương Tư Viễn on 30 October strengthened his individual position. In the final round, he drew with Chiết Giang’s Doãn Thăng, helping Thường Thục hold the eventual champions.
The MVP award therefore reflects a season-long contribution rather than a separate single-game individual title. The article published on 2 November reports a competition completed over the preceding weekend.
Third place decided on additional criteria
Chiết Giang won the championship. Thành Đô, Thường Thục and Hà Bắc each finished with 30 points, with additional board and standard-game criteria separating them in that order behind the champions.
Lưu Bách Hoành remains a secondary-school student. His earlier record, as described by Tuổi Trẻ, includes the 2024 Asian individual title and runner-up in the Cao Tân Cao Cảng Open in June 2026.
With this league season complete, maintaining that scoring consistency is the next competitive challenge. The final table also sends Thâm Quyến and Bắc Kinh back to qualifying for the following season.