First shogi player to hold the seven major titles simultaneously (traditional titles)

Yoshiharu Habu (Japan) became the first shogi player to hold the seven major titles (traditional titles) simultaneously in the history of competitive shogi after winning the Osho title on 14 February 1996.

In the previous year Habu held six major titles but lost to Koji Tanigawa (Japan) for the last of the seven major titles, Osho. He defended every single title he held for the next year then once again became the challenger for the Osho title, which he won four against zero in the seven-match championship finals. Habu proceeded to win all seven major 'lifetime' titles which he completed on 5 December 2017, with winning the Ryuo title for the seventh time.