Ryota Murata beats Hassan N'Dam in rematch to claim WBA middleweight world title

Oct 23, 2017 | News On Japan

Oct 23, 2017 (Japan Times) - Olympic gold medalist Ryota Murata has obtained another shining treasure.

Five months after he lost in a controversial split decision, the 31-year-old Murata gave a dominant performance in a rematch against champion Hassan N'Dam and captured the WBA middleweight title at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan on Sunday.

Murata (13-1, nine KOs) became the first-ever Japanese Olympic gold medalist to win a professional world championship. He is the first Japanese boxer to win a world title in that weight division since former WBA champ Shinji Takehara, who won the same title in 1995.

N'Dam, a Cameroon-born Frenchman, failed to defend the title that he earned in his first match against Murata.

Murata was extremely cautious and threw only a few punches in the first round of the May fight. But he began the rematch in a different fashion. He was in more of an attacking mode this time and fired more blows from the opening round.

Murata got into his stride from the third round. He landed heavy, effective body shots - the type which earned him the gold medal at the London Olympics in 2012 - and began weakening N'Dam.

Typhoons No. 28 and 29 Bring High Waves to Japan's Pacific Coast

Two typhoons moving across the Pacific southeast of Japan are expected to remain well away from the Japanese mainland, but powerful swells could bring rough seas to a wide stretch of the country's Pacific coastline throughout the three-day holiday weekend, according to forecasts updated at 3 a.m. on October 10.

Cyberattacks Spread Across Japan

A series of cyberattacks has disrupted business operations and exposed millions of customer records across Japan, with a ransomware attack on a cloud service provider affecting 495 companies and local governments nationwide, while convenience store operator Lawson has disclosed a separate breach involving more than 2.15 million personal information records.

Japan's First 360-Degree Projection Mapping Opens in Osaka

Japan's first 360-degree projection mapping show will open at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts on October 10, transforming the historic building into an immersive world of light, music, and seasonal imagery, with organizers hoping the attraction will also help stimulate the city's nighttime economy.

Tokyo University Professor Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Tokyo University of Science professor emeritus Kenzo Soai has been awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with French chemist Henri B. Kagan for discoveries that transformed scientists' understanding of how chemical reactions can favor one of two mirror-image forms of a molecule.

US Military Halts All Okinawa Operations for 48 Hours

The US military suspended activities by all forces stationed in Okinawa for 48 hours from noon on October 7, an unusual measure following the arrest of a US Marine in connection with a robbery and murder case that has renewed scrutiny of crimes involving American service members.

MEDIA CHANNELS

MORE Society NEWS

Most Sightings of Fugitive Yoichi Hatta Reported in Kanto

Police in Oita Prefecture have revealed that the Kanto region accounts for the largest number of reported sightings of Yoichi Hatta, a fugitive wanted in connection with a fatal hit-and-run incident in Beppu in 2022, with authorities preparing to distribute new wanted posters nationwide from November as the search enters its fifth year.