Moorthy, K S

Kanapathy Sathia Moorthy (1932 – 2010), known as K S Moorthy, was one of two Singaporean judokas who competed at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. Moorthy began practising martial arts from the age of 14. Later, as a lieutenant in the Malayan Armed Forces, he took up judo in 1956 at the Selangor Judo Club. After earning his black belt in just 18 months, he moved to Singapore in 1958 and trained under Ichijima and Nishimura. He further honed his skills while studying at Japan’s Budo University. In addition to judo, Moorthy also pursued bodybuilding, boxing, jujitsu, karate, taekwondo, and hapkido.

At the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, Moorthy qualified for the semi-finals in the middleweight class. He fought two matches, winning against his opponent from the Philippines in the first, but losing to an opponent from Argentina in the second. In 1965, he won a gold medal at the Southeast Asian Peninsular (SEAP) Games held in Kuala Lumpur. By 1981, Moorthy had become the president of the Singapore Judo Federation, holding the highest black belt ranking in Asia, the ninth dan, in both judo and jujitsu. He also served as vice-president of the Asian Judo Union and as an executive member of the Commonwealth Judo Association. He retired from the Prison Service as an assistant superintendent at the age of 57.

After retiring from competitive judo, Moorthy, having achieved Class A referee certification, returned to the Olympics, often serving as a referee or technical jury member at international tournaments since 1981. Besides promoting judo, he was also an advocate for sports in Singapore. In 1985, he urged the Singapore government to “help by finding suitable jobs for elite sportsmen so they can train hard without worrying about their careers.” Moorthy was widely recognized for his services: In 1968, the Singapore National Olympic Council awarded Moorthy a Meritorious Service Medal for Sports; in 1973, he received the Efficiency Medal for his efforts in promoting martial arts within the Prison Service and was awarded the Public Service Medal in 1987 for his contributions to the development of martial arts in Singapore.

For more information
“Kanapathy Sathia Moorthy.” Singapore National Olympic Council. Accessed on 1 August 2025. https://www.singaporeolympics.com/olympians/kanapathy-sathia-moorthy/
“Youngest sixth dan judoka in South-east Asia.” The Straits Times, 4 March 1980, 24. (From Newspaper SG)
“Moorthy at helm of SJC.” The Straits Times, 29 May 1981, 38. (From Newspaper SG)
“Moorthy now a world referee.” The Straits Times, 26 July 1981, 30. (From Newspaper SG)
“K S MOORTHY.” Singapore Monitor, 9 March 1985, 26. (From Newspaper SG)
“Moorthy receives national honours.” The Straits Times, 13 August 1987, 31. (From Newspaper SG)

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The information in this article is valid as of August 2025 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. If you have any feedback on this article, please submit here.