Paralympians receive Emperor's Cups

Seven gold medalists from the Nagano Paralympics received Emperor's Cups from Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto in a ceremony at the Prime Minister's Official Residence on March 26.

The recipients of the award, a pair of silver cups, were: Yutaka Takeda and Toshiki Watanabe for the ice-sledge speed races; Kuniko Obinata for the women's Alpine skiing; Wakako Tsuchida and Miki Matsue for women's ice-sledge speed races; Masahiro Shitaka for Alpine skiing; and Miyuki Kobayashi for the women's biathlon for blind athletes.

The prime minister gave 10 other athletes watches as keepsakes. In a congratulatory speech, Hashimoto praised their performances, which he said had deeply impressed the public.

Representing the athletes, ice-sledge racer Takeda expressed their gratitude toward those who have supported them. "We will make more efforts to improve our performances and to win at the next Paralympics Games in Salt Lake City," Takeda said.