Junji Noda - The Japan Times

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Junji Noda

For Junji Noda's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

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Oct 4, 2002

Hewitt tested in AIG Japan Open victory

The weather was perfect. The expectations were high.

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Oct 3, 2002

Hewitt whips Chang to ease into third round

For many who dream of playing professional tennis without the height to rack up aces like Goran Ivanisevic or the serve-and-volley game to dominate like Pete Sampras did in the '90s, the 175-cm Michael Chang has been a huge inspiration.

BASEBALL / MLB

Oct 1, 2002

Cabrera tees off against Lotte

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. -- Brian Sikorski offered a loud warning to every Pacific League pitcher: Watch out -- Seibu's Alex Cabrera is red hot.

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Sep 23, 2002

Serena: The princess of tennis

All the underdog wanted was a few minutes of Serena Williams' off her best game. That's how Kim Clijsters described her chances of topping the world's No. 1 player in the Toyota Princess Cup final.

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Sep 22, 2002

Serena, Clijsters advance to Toyota Princess Cup final

Kim Clijsters hit the ball so hard, it almost landed in the top deck of Ariake Colosseum. She had just hit a forehand beyond the baseline and her opponent, Jelena Dokic, instinctively returned the ball to Clijsters' side.

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Sep 21, 2002

Serena wastes little time getting into semis

This one didn't resemble a best-of-three tennis match. Apparently, a 1-hour, 3-minute match in the second round of the Toyota Princess Cup wasn't short enough for Serena Williams.

BASEBALL / MLB

Sep 19, 2002

Seibu one win away from Pacific League crown

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. -- Standing at the entrance door behind home plate, Seibu's Kazuo Matsui was almost tempted to walk out onto the artificial turf after the game.

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Sep 17, 2002

Tired Greene ends sprint season on a low in Yokohama

YOKOHAMA -- After a 12-hour flight from Paris, Maurice Greene couldn't get to sleep until the early hours of Monday morning. And during warmups for the 100-meter race at the Super Track and Field Meet 2002 on Monday, the body of the world's second fastest man didn't react quite like normal.

BASEBALL / MLB

Sep 13, 2002

Manager's gaffe, Petagine's bat pay off for Yakult

Wearing a T-shirt and shorts, Yakult pitcher Yataro Sakamoto was sitting back in front of the TV at the Jingu Stadium clubhouse prior to Thursday's game against the Hanshin Tigers. It was his night off in the rotation.

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Sep 10, 2002

Smith bowls 'em over to win Japan Cup title

Even the most powerful bowler on the PBA Tour couldn't fight off a severe cold. The collar of his shirt soaked in sweat all day, American Robert Smith at least found some relief at the Tokyo Port Bowl alleys Sunday: A Japan Cup title and a 5 million yen paycheck.

BASEBALL / MLB

Sep 8, 2002

'Wave win by going station-to-station

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. -- Orix BlueWave manager Hiromichi Ishige had the numbers crunched in his head. Team batting average against Seibu this year: a shabby .200. Lions' top reliever Shinji Mori's ERA against his squad this year: a perfect 0.00.

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Sep 6, 2002

Pro bowler Bohn masters the mind game

YOKOHAMA -- Parker Bohn III thinks, throws, reacts and thinks again. It's the same routine over and over. The 17-year pro bowler says 50 percent of the game starts and ends in his head.

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Aug 30, 2002

Americans finish with a bang

YOKOHAMA -- Before taking the team bus to Yokohama pool, American Michael Phelps went online in his hotel room and checked out a world record. Not Ian Thorpe's, but the men's 4x100 medley relay.

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Aug 29, 2002

U.S. swimmers win four out of five finals

YOKOHAMA -- Sachiko Yamada had the home crowd screaming their lungs out. Same with Ian Thorpe, who proved he was fastest regardless of length.

BASEBALL / MLB

Aug 24, 2002

Kawanaka leads the way as Giants triumph

Hanshin Tigers' manager Senichi Hoshino ignored the "Never, Never, Never Surrender" theme he's been preaching to his team all year. What's worse, the slogan of the year transpired onto only one guy.

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Aug 22, 2002

Garnett tells kids to work like All-Stars

In almost every drill he taught during his clinic, Kevin Garnett told the participating Japanese kids that repetition and hard work were the only ways to improve and succeed.

BASEBALL / MLB

Aug 17, 2002

'Little' Matsui getting major attention

Aside from the hype surrounding Giants' Hideki Matsui and whether he will use his free agency to join the majors -- more specifically, the New York Yankees -- the "Little" Matsui is generating as much attention from the major league scouts.

BASEBALL / MLB

Aug 15, 2002

Lions take advantage of a Lotte errors

CHIBA -- Errors don't win ball games and Chiba Lotte manager Koji Yamamoto was quite blunt about it. "I don't get how we can commit three errors in four innings," said Yamamoto, whose team handed three runs on those errors to the Seibu Lions in a 4-2 loss Wednesday night in front of 31,000 at Chiba Marine Stadium.

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Jul 29, 2002

Spain sweeps Japan in Kirin Cup hoops

Jordi Trias scored 10 points for Spain in a 12-2 run to start the fourth quarter Sunday to put Japan's national team away, as the hosts finished the three-game Kirin Cup Basketball 2002 with a 89-67 defeat.

BASEBALL / MLB

Jul 19, 2002

Dragons sweep Swallows

The Yakult Swallows realized one bat can't save a team.

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.

The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces

By Stephen Mansfield

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