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OLYMPICS
Jul 1, 2012

Japan's medal count in London hard to forecast

In its past 11 Summer Olympic appearances, dating back to the 1964 Tokyo Games, Japan has collected 275 medals.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 21, 2006

Ishihara flies over the hurdles toward his own 2016 Olympic gold

Politicians often get elected because of promises they make. In his one term as governor of Tokyo, comedian Yukio Aoshima didn't accomplish anything noteworthy, but he did keep the one promise that got him elected: He canceled the World City Exposition that many constituents thought would be a waste...
EDITORIALS
Aug 30, 2004

An example for the real world

Peace is the central message of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. The Olympic flame -- the symbol of that message -- will be extinguished late Sunday night (early Monday in Japan), about five months after it was lit in Olympia, the site of the ancient Olympics. In a world riven with hatred and violence,...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 28, 2020

The geopolitics of sports: Japan’s Summer Games on the world stage

There is no bigger stage for how the world will see the Olympics and Japan's ability to “bend adversity,” as it has done throughout its history.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Apr 13, 2017

Argentine Lamas hired as new Japan men's national team basketball coach

Julio Lamas has assumed the head coaching position for the Japan men's national squad, the Japan Basketball Association officially announced on Thursday.
EDITORIALS
Jan 14, 2013

Tokyo's chances in 2020

The city of Tokyo on Jan. 7 filed its bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics with the International Olympics Committee in Switzerland. Tokyo failed in its bid to host the 2016 Olympics, losing to Rio de Janeiro.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Oct 24, 2012

Senkaku dispute opens door wider for Istanbul 2020 bid

A prominent Turkish journalist believes that the ongoing dispute between Japan and China over the Senkaku Islands could affect the outcome of the voting for the 2020 Olympics, thereby making Istanbul's path to victory easier.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jul 24, 2012

100 years of Summer Games

When the 293 Japanese athletes compete in the London Games that start Friday, they will represent a century of the participation in the Summer Olympics, starting with marathoner Shiso Kanakuri and sprinter Yahiko Mishima in Stockholm in 1912.
OLYMPICS
Jul 29, 2008

Olympians get spirited sendoff

Four years after Japan's best-ever performance in the Summer Olympics — a 37-medal effort in Athens — the nation is gearing up for 2008's biggest sporting extravaganza in style.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Apr 24, 2008

Kitajima eager for challenge

Kosuke Kitajima prepares for this summer's Beijing Olympics as the reigning Olympic champion in the men's 100- and 200-meter breaststroke races. But instead of considering himself the king of the hill, he will stand on the starting block with the mind-set of a challenger.
EDITORIALS
Apr 21, 2008

Torch relay lights up many issues

The most controversial Olympic torch relay in history will arrive in Japan this week. The relay route has been changed and another event canceled in Nagano amid worries over the many protesters who have followed the route as persistently as any athlete. This Olympic torch has turned out to be symbolic...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jul 22, 2005

Baseball had no chance in IOC vote with Rogge at helm

Mission accomplished.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 20, 2001

'Field of Dreams' schemes bleed taxpayers

A good deal of discussion on Japan's economic problems emphasizes the need to trim wasteful public works projects. Critics are quick to zero in on "hard" schemes such as bridges, highways, airports and dams that eat up huge chunks of tax money and are rarely used.
OLYMPICS
Sep 13, 2000

Web sites offer a different Olympic view

Want an alternative perspective of the Sydney Olympics? Look no further than the World Wide Web, where everyone from subversives to satirists are poking criticism and fun at the biggest sporting show on earth. Fired by a sense that Australia and the Games are not all sugar-coated harmony and joy -- or...
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 1, 2016

Extravagant gamble of Rio's mayor

The Olympic Games could make or break the career of Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
May 5, 2013

Dai Tamesue: Japan's 'samurai hurdler' keeps rising to new challenges

Though word-class track athlete Dai Tamesue may have hung up his spikes, he has plenty of insights to share on how sports can play a bigger role in society.
OLYMPICS
Dec 22, 2005

Igaya focused on 2016 bid

International Olympic Committee vice president Chiharu Igaya said there is a good chance for Japan to host the 2016 Games.
JAPAN
Feb 6, 1998

Osaka Games bid may be a costly pipe dream in development

Staff writerOSAKA -- Kazuhito Konishi is not likely to be on the list of people Osaka Mayor Takafumi Isomura hopes to meet during his trip to Nagano this weekend to promote Osaka's 2008 Olympics bid.
Figure Skating
Jul 19, 2022

In pictures: The brilliant competitive career of Yuzuru Hanyu

Moments from the brilliant career of figure-skating superstar Yuzuru Hanyu.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 21, 2021

Episode 91: The long road to the Olympic Games — Part 1

In Part 1 of a two-part look at the long and tumultuous road to the Olympics, we look at Tokyo's initial bid for the Olympics in 2011, how the city won that bid in 2013, and the ups and downs that accompanied the story of the Games until the famous handover ceremony at the Rio Olympics in 2016.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Dec 16, 2018

FIBA task force positive on Tokyo 2020 berth for Japan

Japan's men's basketball team is on the right track to earn a spot at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, FIBA task force co-chairman Ingo Weiss told a news conference on Sunday.
Japan Times
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Apr 17, 2018

Orser says Hanyu is greatest ever

"I have to say, he is the greatest of all time. That's for sure."
MORE SPORTS
Apr 10, 2016

Kitajima makes retirement official, ending illustrious career

For more than a decade, Kosuke Kitajima competed at the highest levels of the swimming world.
JAPAN
Feb 2, 2014

Tokyo election goes nuclear

Ignoring the powers that be, nuclear power takes center stage during an online debate involving the four major candidates for the Tokyo gubernatorial election — with three firmly against.
EDITORIALS
Feb 19, 2013

Save Olympic wrestling

Japan should join the other countries that are opposed to the IOC's decision to possibly exclude wrestling from the 2020 Olympics and launch strong lobbying activities to save the sport.
The head priest of Kiyomizu Temple writes the kanji "kin," which was chosen by the public as the character that best represents 2024, on Thursday in Kyoto.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2024

'Kin' selected as the kanji of 2024 after strong year for Japanese athletes

The choice also reflected the Liberal Democratic Party’s slush-fund scandal and the spate of robberies involving shady part-time jobs.
Internally displaced Syrians from eastern Ghouta queue for food in a Damascus countryside in April 2018.
WORLD / Society
Dec 24, 2024

Global hunger crisis deepens as major nations skimp on aid

The United Nations says that, at best, it will be able to raise enough money to help about 60% of the 307 million people it predicts will need humanitarian aid next year.
Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone (left) tries to get a shot away in front of Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid during the second period at Rogers Place, Edmonton, Canada on Dec. 14, 2024.
MORE SPORTS / Ice Hockey
Feb 12, 2025

Canada and Sweden ready to drop puck on anticipated 4 Nations Face-Off

Not since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey have the NHL's brightest stars lined up against each other to compete for their countries.
Japan head coach Hajime Moriyasu gives a speech after his team clinched a spot in the 2026 World Cup with a win over Bahrain on Thursday in Saitama.
SOCCER / World cup
Mar 23, 2025

Japan's quiet World Cup celebrations show it is hungry for much more

Samurai Blue celebrated its qualification for the World Cup with victory speeches and a water shower for coach Hajime Moriyasu. But this squad has much bigger aims.
Australian sprinter Gout Gout reacts after competing in an event in Stawell, Australia, on Monday.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Apr 23, 2025

Australia's Gout Gout on track for World Championships debut at 17

The Queenslander's rapid rise has raised comparisons with Jamaican great Usain Bolt.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.