Japanese Come Away With First Two Titles

Ryoko Tamura, a four-time world champion, finally won an Olympic gold in the women’s 106-pound class, defeating Lioubov Brouletova of Russia.

Tamura won a silver medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games and then went on an 84-match winning streak that carried her into the championship match at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

But the 4-foot-9 Tamura surprisingly lost to North Korea’s Kye Sun-Hi to settle for silver. She won the 1997 and 1999 world championships before taking the elusive Olympic gold.

In the men’s 132-pound final, Tadahiro Nomura defeated South Korea’s Jung Bu-Kyung.