Japanese boxing authorities will hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday following the deaths of two fighters who suffered fatal injuries at the same event, sparking national concern over safety standards in the sport.
Shigetoshi Kotari and Hiromasa Urakawa, both aged 28, died days after undergoing brain surgery. They had competed in separate bouts on August 2 at Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall.
The Japan Boxing Commission (JBC), along with gym owners and other officials, is under growing pressure to take action. Talks on improving safety protocols are also expected to continue into next month.
“We are acutely aware of our responsibility as the manager of the sport,” JBC secretary-general Tsuyoshi Yasukochi told reporters. “We will take whatever measures we can.”
A major concern is the practice of rapid weight loss before fights, often through dehydration — a process believed to make the brain more vulnerable to serious injury.
“Dehydration makes the brain more susceptible to bleeding,” the Asahi Shimbun reported. Trainers and gym officials will be consulted on weight management and pre-fight conditioning, as these factors may have contributed to the recent fatalities, according to Nikkan Sports.
As an immediate step, the JBC has reduced all Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation title bouts from 12 rounds to 10.
“The offensive power of Japanese boxing today is tremendous,” Yasukochi said. “We have more and more boxers who are able to start exchanges of fierce blows from the first round. Maybe 12 rounds can be dangerous.”
The back-to-back tragedies have triggered rare public debate in Japan, with calls growing louder for a serious overhaul of health and safety practices in the sport.