Search - sport s

 
 
Sara Saito competes at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in October last year.
TENNIS
Jan 24, 2025

Sara Saito’s journey from tennis courts in Gunma to promising WTA pro

The 18-year-old Saito, who has steadily risen up the WTA rankings, is the only teenager among the eight Japanese players in the top 200.
Jannik Sinner accepted a three-month ban on Saturday to bring his doping case to an end.
TENNIS
Feb 17, 2025

Jannik Sinner's deal with WADA leads to skepticism from fellow players

Sinner's long doping saga came to an end on Saturday after he agreed to a three-month ban.
Ichiyamamoto (left) defeats Gonoyama to secure a winning record at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, at IG Arena on Monday.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jul 23, 2025

Disappointing start to Nagoya tournament turns into fascinating final stretch

Sumo’s schedule makers will almost certainly ensure that if Ichiyamamoto is going to taste glory for the first time, he’ll have to do it the hard way.
Former U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps testifies before Congress during a hearing on anti-doping measures in Washington on June 25.
MORE SPORTS / Swimming
Aug 15, 2025

U.S. legend Michael Phelps slams USA Swimming and calls for overhaul

Phelps traced his frustrations back through his competitive career, saying he often felt that his voice went unheard.
Tokito Oda serves against Casey Ratzlaff during the first round of the U.S. Open wheelchair tennis tournament in New York on Wednesday.
TENNIS
Sep 5, 2025

Japanese phenom Tokito Oda off to winning start at U.S. Open

Oda is chasing a career Grand Slam at the U.S. Open — the only thing missing from his resume.
Nour El-Sherbini, the top-ranked women's squash player, has won seven World Squash Championships.
OLYMPICS
Oct 17, 2023

Squash stronghold Egypt celebrates sport's inclusion in 2028 Games

Egypt dominates squash, with five players currently in the top ten in the men's world rankings as well as the top three in the women's rankings.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen drives during a practice session at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Nov 17, 2023

Lewis Hamilton defends Vegas race after Max Verstappen's criticism

Hamilton offered his thoughts about the Las Vegas Grand Prix after Max Verstappen called it "99% show and 1% sporting event."
John McFall, a former Paralympian, has been cleared for future space missions with the European Space Agency.
PARALYMPICS
Aug 28, 2024

World's first 'parastronaut' hails Paralympics' 'powerful platform'

John McFall will be taking a stand for sports and space this week after becoming the first person with a physical disability to be cleared for missions by the ESA.
WADA President Witold Banka attends the World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland, on March 12, 2024.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 12, 2025

WADA calls on U.S. to stop Enhanced Games from taking place

The first Enhanced Games will be staged in Las Vegas in May 2026, with athletes participating in three sports — athletics, swimming and weightlifting.
Wrestlers approach the ring during a regional sumo tour in Misato, Saitama Prefecture in April 2016.
SUMO / Inside Sumo
Aug 27, 2025

Sumo’s grueling summer tour reveals wrestlers' true condition

The heat and length makes the summer tour by far the most physically taxing in sumo, giving fans greater clarity regarding the health of their favorite rikishi.
The first rule of the International Chess Federation's dress code is "dress to impress." The dress code is supposed to promote a "good and positive image of chess” and "shall be strictly enforced,” according to the federation's website.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 29, 2023

Chess federation fines player over her ‘sports shoes’

Critics on the internet were quick to condemn the strict dress code, with some people arguing that the chess organization has the wrong priorities.
Ibuki Matsumoto competes at an event in Osaka on April 21.
OLYMPICS / Skateboarding
May 6, 2024

Japan’s tween skateboarders get head start on preparations for 2028 Olympics

Hikari Satake, 11, and Ibuki Matsumoto, 12, may not be household names just yet, but they are laying the groundwork for their Olympic ambitions.
Tunisia's Ons Jabeur in action during her exhibition match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka in Riyadh on Dec. 26. Saudi Arabia has hosted exhibition matches and last year hosted its first ATP Tour event with the Next Gen Finals.
TENNIS
May 21, 2024

Women's tennis signs 'multi-year partnership' with Saudi investment fund

Much like its forays into golf and football, the Saudi tennis push has met some resistance.
Skye Parker of the United Kingdom, a participant in the More Than Equal Global Driver Development program, trains with a coach in Saalfelden, Austria, on Friday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
May 22, 2024

Young female drivers take aim at F1's male monopoly

The More Than Equal initiative is seeking to find and develop the first female F1 world champion.
Sora Shirai trains at the Olympic skateboarding venue in Paris on Thursday.
OLYMPICS / Skateboarding
Jul 28, 2024

Will these sensational skateboarding tricks win Japan Olympic gold?

Japanese skateboarders like Yuto Horigome and Sora Shirai are creating some of the most difficult tricks in the history of the sport, and landing them in high style.
Simone Biles alongside teammate Sunisa Lee after they finished with gold and bronze, respectively, in the women's all-around competition at the Olympics.
OLYMPICS / Gymnastics
Aug 4, 2024

Simone Biles proves to be unifying figure for sports fans in Paris

Stars from other sports and rabid fans from the U.S. and other countries have turned out in droves to watch Biles, proving her position as a unifying figure.
Ami Yuasa performs in the b-girls breaking competition final during the Paris Summer Olympics earlier this month. She won gold in the event.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 21, 2024

The victories, viral moments and vocabulary of Paris 2024

When following the Olympics in Japanese, knowing all the buzzwords that spring up could be a competition of its own.
Ami Yuasa won the B-Girl competition during the breaking event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
OLYMPICS / Breaking
Jan 3, 2025

Breaking’s big year that wasn’t

Beyond music insiders or Olympic aficionados, most would struggle to recall the winners of the inaugural breaking competition at the Games.
Hoshoryu will make his debut at yokozuna during the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament, which begins in Osaka on Sunday.
SUMO
Mar 7, 2025

New yokozuna Hoshoryu and rising star Onosato enter Spring Basho as favorites

Hoshoryu already has a pair of titles to his name, and is coming off perhaps the most impressive eight-bout stretch of his career to date.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw takes part in a sumo demonstration in Tokyo on Friday.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Mar 19, 2025

Japan’s twin obsessions meet as MLB visits sumo’s heartland

Sumo is often referred to as Japan’s national sport but it’s baseball that is the country’s one true obsession. This week, those two sports are intersecting in Tokyo.
Giants special advisor to baseball operations Dusty Baker looks on before the game against the Washington Nationals at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Aug. 8.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 22, 2025

MLB greats warn lockout or strike would derail sport's momentum

The current collective bargaining agreement between MLB and the MLB Players Association expires next year.
SUMO
Nov 10, 2023

Young ozeki duo may be ready to step into spotlight at Kyushu Basho

Kirishima and Hoshoryu have generated much of the excitement in Japan’s national sport over the past 12 months.
Singer Taylor Swift walks off the field after the AFC title game in Baltimore, Maryland, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Football
Jan 29, 2024

Taylor Swift may race back to U.S. from Tokyo to watch Travis Kelce in Super Bowl

Taylor Swift has an Eras Tour performance in Tokyo the night before the Super Bowl.
Fans cheer during a friendly match between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Kiwoon Heroes ahead of the Major League Baseball Seoul Series in Seoul on Sunday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 18, 2024

MLB brings Shohei Ohtani, season openers and big dreams to Seoul

With a set of stars from the region, 2024 is turning out to be baseball’s moment in Asia.
Onosato (above) defeats Hiradoumi on the first day of the Kyushu Basho in Fukuoka on Sunday.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Nov 13, 2024

The good, the bad and the sumo: Kyushu Basho gets underway

To no one’s surprise, new ozeki Onosato continues to tear through the top division with ease.
Japan’s national sport made its second foray into Western Europe, and first to the U.K., with a five-day tournament at London’s historic Royal Albert Hall in October 1991.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Dec 11, 2024

London calling: Sumo's U.K. trip brings back memories of 1991

Such was sumo’s popularity in the U.K. in the late '80s and early '90s that all five days at the 5,000-seat Royal Albert Hall sold out quickly.
Hoshoryu dispatches Oho in a playoff to clinch the Emperor's Cup on the final day of the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament on Sunday in Tokyo.
SUMO / Basho reports
Jan 26, 2025

Hoshoryu overcomes rank-and-file wrestlers to put yokozuna promotion in sight

Despite the best efforts of Kinbozan and Oho, it was ozeki Hoshoryu that eventually emerged victorious in the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament.
China's Zhao Xintong poses with the trophy after winning the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield, England, on Monday.
MORE SPORTS
May 6, 2025

'Shared dream': China celebrates Zhao's world snooker breakthrough

The 28-year-old Zhao became the first Asian to win the prestigious title with an 18-12 victory over Mark Williams in the final on Monday.
Naomi Osaka participates in a forum on mental health during the U.S. Open in New York on Wednesday.
TENNIS
Sep 7, 2023

Naomi Osaka makes U.S. Open return. But not for tennis.

Naomi Osaka returned to the U.S. Open to participate in a forum on mental health and sports alongside former Olympian Michael Phelps.
Former world No. 1 Simona Halep arrives at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, in February.
TENNIS
Mar 6, 2024

Simona Halep free to return after four-year doping ban reduced by CAS

The two-time Grand Slam singles champion had appealed to CAS in February, arguing that her positive test was the result of a "contaminated product."

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight