DOMINANT ANGLE
Brussels notes the Nobel Prize in Chemistry's belated recognition of Henri Kagan, 95, whom the 2001 prize had overlooked despite his status as the "father" of asymmetric catalysis.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded on Wednesday, October 7, to Henri Kagan (95 years old, Paris-Saclay) and Kenso Soai (76 years old, Tokyo) for their research in asymmetric catalysis.
- 02
Kagan, considered the "father" of the technique, had not been awarded the prize in 2001, which had sparked protests from the French Ministry of Research.
- 03
The prize is worth 12 million Swedish crowns, or a little over one million euros; Kenso Soai speaks of the "most incredible day of my life".
ANALYSIS
Brussels, October 8, 2026. The French-speaking Belgian press covers the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in the style of a news agency dispatch, published on Wednesday, October 7 at 12:05 p.m. and updated at 3:55 p.m. in La Libre Belgique, and at 12:15 p.m. and 3:56 p.m. in La Dernière Heure. The prize is awarded to Frenchman Henri Kagan and Japanese Kenso Soai "for their research in asymmetric catalysis".
The Nobel Committee is quoted first: "Their discoveries have played a crucial role for chemists who design reactions for the production of pharmaceutical products". The text does not detail the scientific mechanism of mirror molecules. It focuses on the industrial application, the production of pharmaceutical products.
The element that both headlines put at the center is the history of the prize. Part of the field had already been awarded in 2001, "but not Professor Kagan, considered in France and around the world as the 'father' of this technique". The articles recall that this omission had sparked protests from the French Ministry of Research at the time. The 2026 award is therefore seen in these columns as a recognition that comes twenty-five years later.
The two laureates are briefly presented. Henri Kagan, 95 years old, is currently a professor at the University of Paris-Saclay. Kenso Soai, 76 years old, is a professor at the University of Natural Sciences in Tokyo. Reached by phone by the Nobel Foundation, the latter reacted: "This is the most incredible day of my life".
The articles also put the announcement into the Nobel season context. Chemistry is the third scientific prize, after medicine and physics, awarded on Monday and Tuesday. In 2025, the prize had distinguished new molecular structures capable of trapping gases. Before the announcement, experts were hesitating between very different fields, from gene therapy to sleep hormones, including self-assembled monolayers.
The Nobel Prize includes a diploma, a gold medal, and a check for 12 million Swedish crowns, or a little over one million euros. The economics prize will close the Nobel season on October 12.
No specific Belgian angle appears in these texts: neither a reaction from a Belgian researcher or university, nor a political commentary. The reading remains that of international news relayed with its historical context.
