the third before the towel came in from the challenger’s corner. After the fight, Tszyu (24-2, 17 KOs) took the loss on the chin, praising Murtazaliev in the ring at the Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida. Now based out of Vegas, Tszyu will have a lot of work to do to climb to the top of the mountain again. Australian-based boxing journalist Anthony Cocks has been covering the sport for over 20 years for various print and online publications.
established the campaign “Save the Innocent Boxer Hakamada” in 1980 and continued steadily even when the petition was stagnant. They handed out leaflets to fans at the famous fighting venue Korakuen Hall to keep people aware of this tragedy involving an ex-boxer. Some of the supporters have passed away on the long way, hoping for this triumph. Hakamada was able to add his own words in person at a supporters rally on September 29: “It’s been a long battle, but I’ve finally been found completely innocent.” The “Hakamada Seats” for Iwao and Hideko Hakamada placed at ringside in Korakuen Hall since March 2013 are always there for the true warriors who have persevered through the toughest fights.
society that has campaigned to clear his name for decades – were overjoyed for the justice. Ex-pro boxer and boxing photographer Hiroaki Yamaguchi, who used to wear a T-shirt with the slogan “Free Hakamada Now!” whenever shooting at ringside, posted a smiling selfie stating “No longer need to wear those shirts!” It’s well known in Japan that the late Carter, a former middleweight contender who spent 19 years of a life sentence in prison on a false charge, had recognized and supported Hakamada.
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JAPAN BY YURIKO MIYATA Iwao Hakamada’s 58-year battle finally ended with victory and the former pro boxer’s long- sought freedom. The Shizuoka District Court found Hakamada not guilty of murder on September 26, denying the prosecution’s demand for the death penalty in the
The infamous “Hakamada Case” occurred at the miso manufacturing and sales company where the former nationally rated featherweight, 30 years old at the time, was working as a live-in employee. His boss and three other family members were killed, and the building was set on fire afterward. Hakamada, who helped to extinguish the fire, was arrested and imprisoned in August on suspicion mainly based on the assumption that he was strong enough to kill the boss, who had an intimidating physique and judo experience. Hakamada was forced to admit guilt under severe torture but was persistent in his innocence in court. However, the Shizuoka Prefectural Police submitted sudden “new evidence” – five bloodstained articles of Hakamada’s clothing, found thrown in a miso tank – that eventually led the Supreme Court to issue a death sentence, which was finalized on December 12, 1980. Opening retrials and overturning previous court decisions are difficult procedures that take many years – especially in Japan – so it was truly noble of Hakamada’s defense and supporters to take such a tremendous amount of time to prove his innocence. The members of the Japan Pro Boxing Association (a union of club owners)
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Eight World Title Bouts In Three Days
Eight matches for world titles took place in the span of three days – October 12, 13 and 14, the long weekend of national Sports Day – shaking up the 108-, 112- and 118-pound divisions. Two new world titleholders were crowned at junior flyweight: Masamichi Yabuki, who lifted the IBF belt with a ninth-round stoppage of South African veteran Sivenathi Nontshinga at the Aichi Prefectural International Exhibition Hall on October 12, and Shokichi Iwata, who won the vacant WBO strap with a third-round TKO of Spain’s Jairo Noriega at Ariake Arena on October 13. Yabuki (17-4, 16 KOs), who grabbed a world title two years and seven months (a span that includes a setback
retrial of an infamous 1960s case. Hakamada, a rugged journeyman who fought at bantamweight and featherweight from 1959-1961, was wrongly accused of robbery, murder and arson that occurred in Shimizu City of the Shizuoka Prefecture in June 1966, just two weeks after the gun- murder incident in New Jersey that sent an innocent Rubin “Hurricane” Carter to prison. The Shizuoka District Public Prosecutors Office decided not to appeal the case on October 9, finalizing Hakamada’s freedom. The court also accused the investigating authorities of three evidence fabrications to have Hakamada convicted. The 88-year-old Hakamada, his 91-year-old sister, Hideko, and their supporters – which includes a boxing
due to a torn left Achilles tendon) after losing the WBC strap in his
rematch with Kenshiro Teraji, said he was inspired by his boxing children – 14-year-old daughter Yuzuki and 9-year- old son Katsuba, who competed in the junior national tournament 10 days before his fight with Nontshinga. Iwata (14-1, 11 KOs), the first professional boxing world titleholder to
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