Here are pictures of the 2009 Pokemon TCG World Championship Decks: Crowned Tiger, Stallgon, Queengar, and Luxdrill.

The cards are not tournament legal (they have a special back to show that). However, if you just want them to play with friends or for collecting, it’s an inexpensive way to get these rare cards in the decks. The decks will be released later in the month.

Product Description:

Players can experience the thrill of competing like Master Trainers every time they open a Pokemon TCG 2009 World Championships Deck.

There are four powerful decks to choose from – each one a card-for-card replica of an actual title-match deck! Learn winning strategies from some of the best players in the game and start making your own plans for the 2010 World Championships!

Each Pokemon TCG 2009 World Championships deck contains:
- 60-card deck (cards have a different card back and are not tournament-legal)
- 2009 World Championships booklet

Po Bronson, author of the book “NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children” and a Newsweek blogger, has posted an essay about how Pokemon has helped his son’s math and reading. They were reluctant to allow their son to have any Pokemon cards in the beginning, but soon saw the benefits of Pokemon:

That following school year, in his first-grade class, Pokémon became social currency. About half his class was entranced by the cards. At times it seemed ridiculous, but then I’d hear my son plop down two cards and talk out more complicated math problems than anything he saw at school: “160HP minus 110HP plus 30 resistance points minus 20 weakness points equals 60 points left,” he’d say, then plop down two more cards to solve.

I didn’t know then what I know now: Through this repetition, his brain was transforming. Heavily used neurons were learning to fire together, and these chains of neurons were becoming myelinated in thin sheaths of fat; by this process, “gray matter” is converted into “white matter.” The sheath surrounding the nerves acts as an electrical insulator, increasing neural speed by 100-fold. Active repetition also began tuning up the nerve capsules that connected his prefrontal cortex to his parietal cortex in the back of the brain. When these superhighways of nerve tissue come on board, the brain learns to delegate math to the back of the brain, making computation speed radically faster.

While we weren’t aware of the neuroscience, it was plainly obvious: Pokémon cards were making our son’s brain really fast at elementary-school math. I began to buy him cards. Lots of cards.

The second half of first grade, our son started reading the fine-print paragraphs on the cards. He got more reading time in through his love of Pokémon than he ever did at night, when we handed him books. He did read the books out loud to us, but it was a necessary chore. Pokémon was never a chore. And I noticed the paragraphs on the cards were syntactically far more complicated than anything he read in books. Soon, the same brain transformation that drove his math speed was reproduced with his reading speed.

Pokémon had taken over his brain. But in ways my wife never expected. Early in second grade, his math teacher told us he was as fast at math as the fifth graders. Not bad for a kid turned away by most of the local private schools prior to kindergarten.

 
Po Bronson has another follow-up posting here as well: Marshmallow Boy vs. The Pokemon Kid – The Neuroscience of Children’s Passions

It has been announced that the 2010 Pokemon World Championships will be held on Saturday, August 14th, and Sunday, August 15th. And for those that want to push your luck on Friday the 13th, the Pokemon TCG Last Chance Qualifier will be kicking off the events on Friday the 13th.

The 2010 Pokemon World Championships will be held at the Hilton Waikoloa Village on the Big Island of Hawaii. Th event was previously held there back in 2007.

The next Pokemon TCG expansion, Pokemon TCG: Platinum—Arceus, will be released on November 4, 2009:

Announcing the Pokémon TCG Platinum—Arceus expansion, coming November 4th!

Stepping out of ancient times comes a Pokémon so mighty that legends say it shaped the Pokémon universe! On November 4th, 2009, Trainers everywhere can prepare to harness and wield the awesome power of the new legendary Alpha Pokémon Arceus with the arrival of the all-new Pokémon Trading Card Game: Platinum—Arceus expansion. Multiple Energy types of Arceus, such as Fire, Lightning, and Grass, will have opponents preparing for the devastation of fantastic new attacks.

With more than 100 cards in all, the brand-new Pokémon TCG: Platinum—Arceus will arrive in stores nationwide on November 4th, 2009.

Features of the new Pokémon Trading Card Game: Platinum—Arceus:
- Introducing the new Alpha Pokémon Arceus
- Collect multiple versions of Arceus—one of every single Energy type!
- Discover new Pokémon LV.X cards, including 3 Arceus LV.X!

The 2009-2010 Pokemon TCG league cycle has been announced:

Announcing the 2009-2010 League Cycle: Trainer Challenge!
The 2009-2010 league cycle launches on September 21st, and Trainers everywhere will be grabbing their cards and gathering at their local leagues to have fun!

Starting with the Rival season, players of all ages will be able to enjoy all-new seasonal themes based on the toughest Pokémon Trainers in the Sinnoh region, earn all-new league rewards, and even earn credits toward our revamped Player Rewards program! This cycle also marks the first time that the Pokémon League features prizes specifically for Pokémon video game players!

League Rewards
Each season, players will have a chance to earn two different promotional cards. The cards will be printed in a new foil pattern never before used on any other Pokémon card, and not only do they look amazing, but they are also cards that competitive players will be happy to include in their favorite decks! For example, Rival season will offer players a chance to earn Snorlax and Uxie—both of which are popular and instantly recognizable!

In addition to the promo cards, players who play in multiple league seasons and meet certain goals will also have the opportunity to earn unique league-themed Nintendo DS™ skins! These DS skins are available exclusively through league participation and will be rewarded every other season.

For a complete list of cards you can earn as league rewards, and for more about how you can earn all four of the new league-themed Nintendo DS™ skins, check out our league page in the coming weeks!

http://www.go-pokemon.com/op/leagues/

Pokemon TCG Platinum: Supreme Victors was released yesterday:

Increase your power with impressive new Pokémon that will take you to the pinnacle of Pokémon battles—the Battle Frontier! The brand-new Pokémon Trading Card Game Platinum—Supreme Victors is available now!

In the new Pokémon TCG set, Platinum—Supreme Victors, you’ll find more sizzling Pokémon SP like Blaziken, more ferocious Pokémon LV.X like Charizard LV.X, and more opportunities to battle your way to the top. Victory will be supreme when you play with Pokémon trained by Team Galactic, the Battle Frontier elite, and the Sinnoh League Champion! This latest installment of the best-selling Pokémon TCG contains more than 150 cards and features new Pokémon SP and new Pokémon LV.X including Rayquaza, Garchomp and more!

- Collect Dragon-type Pokémon including Charizard and Rayquaza
- Discover new Pokémon LV.X including Charizard, Garchomp, and Blaziken
- More Pokémon SP including Frontier Brain’s Pokémon and Champion’s Pokémon

Press Release:

San Diego, CA – August 17, 2009 – 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 Pokémon TM players in the world this weekend in downtown San Diego, CA. Hosted by The Pokémon Company International, the worldwide leader in video games and trading card games, the Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 DSTM game system, automatic entry in and travel to the 2010 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon 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, Pokémon has established its prominence as one of the top children’s franchises in history. In 2009, the Pokémon animated series will be broadcast in as many as 153 countries in more than 25 languages. The Pokémon video game series has sold more than 191 million games worldwide and The Pokémon 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

2009 Pokemon TCG World Champions

2009 Pokemon Video Game Champions




The 2009 Pokemon World Champions have been crowned today, here are the results:

2009 Pokemon TCG World Championships
Juniors:
1st: Tsubasa Nakamura
2nd: Jason Martinez
3rd: William Shand

Seniors:
1st: Takuto Itagaki
2nd: David Cohen
3rd: Nicolas Fotheringham

Masters:
1st: Stephen Silvestro
2nd: Sammi Sekkoum
3rd: Jay Hornung

2009 Pokemon Video Game World Championships
Juniors:
1st: Jeremiah Fan
2nd: Santa Ito
3rd: Kamran Jahadi

Seniors:
1st: Kazuyuki Tsuji
2nd: Tasuku Mano
3rd: Steven Wasserloos
—
The 2010 Pokemon World Championships will be held in Hawaii!

The official 2009 Pokemon World Championships website has been updated with new pictures from the autograph session today. The president and CEO of The Pokemon Company Tsunekazu Ishihara, GameFreak director Junicihi Masuda, and game designer Takeshi Kawachimaru, were available today for autographs. Fans gave the three a variety of things to sign: posters, t-shirts, jumbo sized cards, messenger bags, and plushies.

As announced earlier, Weavile was distributed today at the Pokemon World Championships. The Weavile is level 30 with the item Focus Sash, and moves: Fake Out, Ice Shard, Night Slash, and Brick Break.

There’s plenty to do at the World Championships, even if you’re not playing in the big tournament (or got eliminated). Side tournaments and league play are running most of the day. There’s a retail store with lots of Pokemon goodies. A movie theater and gaming room to relax in. There’s also the autograph signings by president and CEO of The Pokemon Company Tsunekazu Ishihara, GameFreak director Junicihi Masuda, and game designer Takeshi Kawachimaru. And of course, plenty of Pokemon fans to interact with.