Pokemon Crowns Worldwide Video Game and Trading Card Game Champions

SAN DIEGO, CA, Aug 17 (MARKET WIRE) --
Traveling from over 25 countries and six continents, more than 1,125
players ages 6 to 55 competed for the chance to be crowned the best
Pokemon(TM) players in the world this weekend in downtown San Diego, CA.
Hosted by The Pokemon Company International, the worldwide leader in
video games and trading card games, the Pokemon World Championships gave
the highest-skilled players from around the world a chance to compete for
the prestigious title of World Champion, as well as travel packages,
custom Nintendo game systems, trophies, and more than $100,000 in
scholarships. The two-day championship event emphasized the skill,
strategy, creativity and fun involved in playing the Pokemon Trading Card
and video games.

The top 60 video game players from the United States, Japan and Europe
earned an invitation to participate in the Pokemon Video Game World
Championships by defeating hundreds of challengers in qualifying
tournaments held across the globe. The top finishers in each age division
(Junior and Senior) each received a grand prize that includes a custom
Nintendo DS(TM) game system, automatic entry in and travel to the 2010
Pokemon Video Game World Championships for a chance to defend the title,
and a six-day vacation package for four to Tokyo, New York City, or Oahu.
The winners include:

2009 Pokemon Video Game World Champions - Junior Division (born in 1997 or
later)

First Place: Jeremy Fan (Age 11) from Sante Fe, California USA
Second Place: Santa Ito (Age 9) from Japan

2009 Pokemon Video Game World Champions - Senior Division (born in 1996 or
earlier)

First Place: Kazuyuki Tsuji (Age 25) from Japan
Second Place: Tasuku Mano (Age 15) from Japan

The top 350 TCG players from more than 25 countries qualified for the
invite-only Pokemon Trading Card World Championships by spending countless
hours preparing and battling though a season of city, state, regional and
national tournaments. Each of the three first place TCG finishers received
a grand prize that includes a paid trip and invitation to defend their
title at the 2010 TCG World Championships, as well as a scholarship worth
$7,500. In total, the value of the scholarships divided amongst the TCG
participants from 1st through 16th place in all age divisions totaled more
than $100,000. After two full days and over twelve hours of fierce
one-on-one TCG battles, three winners were crowned in each age
group,
including:

2009 Pokemon Trading Card Game World Champions - Junior Division (born in
1998 or later)

First Place: Tsubasa Nakamura, (Age 9) from Japan
Second Place: Jason Martinez, (Age 11) from Glendale, California USA
Third Place: William Shand, (Age 11) from Colorado Springs, CO

2009 Pokemon Trading Card Game World Champions - Senior Division (born in
1994-1997)

First Place: Takuto Itagaki, (Age 12) from Japan
Second Place: David Cohen, (Age 14) from Kent, Washington USA
Third Place: Nicolas Fotheringham, (Age 15) from United Kingdom

2009 Pokemon Trading Card Game World Champions - Masters Division (born in
1993 or earlier)

First Place: Stephen Silvestro, (Age 20) from Citrus Springs, Florida USA
Second Place: Sammi Sekkoum, (Age 20) from United Kingdom
Third Place: Jay Hernung, (Age 20) from Madrid, Iowa USA

Over the past 13 years, Pokemon has established its prominence as one
of the top children's franchises in history. In 2009, the Pokemon animated
series will be broadcast in as many as 153 countries in more than 25
languages. The Pokemon video game series has sold more than 191 million
games worldwide and The Pokemon Trading Card Game is the No. 1 collectible
trading card game of all-time having more than 46,000 active members
worldwide.

For more information, please visit: http://www.go-pokemon.com/worlds

About Pokemon

The Pokemon Company International, a subsidiary of The Pokemon Company in
Japan, manages the property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand
management, licensing, marketing, the Pokemon Trading Card Game, the
animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokemon website.
Pokemon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular
children's entertainment properties in the world. For more information,
visit www.pokemon.com.

PRESS CONTACTS:

For Pokemon Video Game World Championships:
Brian Reinert
JP Shields
BENDER/HELPER IMPACT
212-689-6360
brian_reinert@bhimpact.com
jp_shields@bhimpact.com

For Pokemon Trading Card Game World Championships:
Catharine Neblett
BAROKAS PUBLIC RELATIONS
206-286-8220
catharine@barokas.com

Copyright 2009, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

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