Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
More Sports Dec 27, 2012
Plushenko sets early tone in Russia
Russia’s 2006 Olympic champion Evgeni Plushenko grabbed the lead in the men’s competition at the Russian figure skating championships on Tuesday at the venue in Sochi where he hopes to crown his career with a second Olympic title in 2014. The 30-year-old former three-time ...
More Sports Dec 25, 2012
Suzuki says next season will be her last
Akiko Suzuki, who finished a disappointing fourth at the national championships over the weekend, announced on Monday that she would retire from competition after next season. The 27-year-old Suzuki, who will represent Japan at the world championships in March, could compete in the 2014 ...
More Sports Dec 24, 2012
Mao comes through to win national title
by Dave Hueston
Mao Asada, Kanako Murakami and Akiko Suzuki were all named to compete at the world figure skating championships in March, the Japan Skating Federation said Sunday. Yuzuru Hanyu, who won his first national title a day earlier, Grand Prix Final winner Daisuke Takahashi and ...
More Sports Dec 23, 2012
Hanyu captures first national title; Suzuki leads after women's short program
Yuzuru Hanyu held fast to his commanding overnight lead against Daisuke Takahashi en route to his first national crown at the Japan Figure Skating National Championships on Saturday In the end the gulf was too large for defending champion Takahashi to bridge in the ...
More Sports Dec 22, 2012
Hanyu dazzles in short program, takes commanding lead over Takahashi
by Dave Hueston
Yuzuru Hanyu propelled himself into the lead with an electrifying performance in the men’s short program, stunning defending champion Daisuke Takahashi at the Japan Figure Skating National Championships on Friday. The 18-year-old boy wonder riveted the crowd at Makomanai Ice Arena with his performance ...
More Sports | ICE TIME Dec 19, 2012
Mao, Kim begin road to second Olympic showdown
by Jack Gallagher
Japan’s strong showing at the recent Grand Prix Final in Sochi, Russia, set the table for what promises to be a fascinating 14 months leading up to the 2014 Olympic Games in the same city. With six of the 12 skaters in singles being ...
More Sports Dec 11, 2012
Kim makes winning return to ice
South Korea’s Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu Na marked her return to the rink in style by winning the NRW Trophy with the season’s best score on Sunday. The 22-year-old Kim, back in competition after a 20-month absence, scored 129.34 points in the ...
More Sports Dec 9, 2012
Mao, Takahashi show stuff at Grand Prix Final in Sochi
Former world champions Mao Asada and Daisuke Takahashi put Japan on course for a gold medal double as both took the lead after the women’s and men’s short programs at the Grand Prix Final in Russia on Friday. Mao, who has won two Grand ...
More Sports Dec 7, 2012
Mao plays down injury concerns
Former two-time world champion Mao Asada arrived in Sochi in the early hours of Thursday morning confident a recurrence of a lower back problem will not affect her bid for her first Grand Prix Final title in four years. Mao, who has won two ...
More Sports Nov 26, 2012
Russian pair triumphs at NHK Trophy
by Jack Gallagher
Russia’s Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov won the pairs with a steady performance in the free skate on Sunday at the NHK Trophy. The victory gave the Russians, who led after Saturday’s short program, a spot in next month’s Grand Prix Final back home ...
More Sports Nov 25, 2012
Hanyu, Mao victorious in NHK Trophy
by Jack Gallagher
Yuzuru Hanyu gave the hometown fans what they wanted most on Saturday — a victory by their hero at the NHK Trophy. Hanyu, who broke his own world record with a mark of 95.32 in Friday’s short program, carried the momentum into Saturday’s free ...
More Sports Nov 24, 2012
Hanyu shatters own world record in short program
by Jack Gallagher
Yuzuru Hanyu electrified the crowd in his native prefecture with a scintillating show of skill and grace to earn a world-record score of 95.32 in the men’s short program on Friday at the NHK Trophy. Hanyu, the 2010 world junior champion, skated to “Parisian ...