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Former sumo wrestler Daisuke Yanagihara discusses his lawsuit against the Japan Sumo Association during a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan on Monday.
SUMO
Aug 1, 2023

Former wrestler sues sumo association for alleged mistreatment

The former fourth-division rikishi said he was told to fight or quit as coronavirus cases rose in Tokyo ahead of the 2021 New Year Basho.
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins (center) and others, as Britain signs the treaty to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, in Auckland on July 16.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Aug 1, 2023

China entry into trans-Pacific trade pact faces political hurdles

China should be able to meet standards set out in the pact, experts say, forcing members to make a politically uncomfortable decision on letting it join.
An inside page of The Japan Times from 1973 carried a story about the discovery of some old Japanese chess pieces.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Aug 1, 2023

Japan Times 1973: 8 'oldest' shogi pieces found in castle's ruins

An ancient discovery and moments that mark the atomic bombings fill past August pages of Japan Times.
A new high-rise is erected in Beijing in October 2021. The same year, 41% of the assets in China’s banking system were accounted for by property-related loans and credit.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 1, 2023

Is Japan’s economic past China’s future?

China is facing a long period of low growth similar to Japan’s experience since the 1990s.
Ukrainian Olga Kharlan (left) and Russian Anna Smirnova compete during the women's sabre senior individual qualifiers at the FIE Fencing World Championships in Milan on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 30, 2023

Don't ask Ukrainian athletes to shake hands with Russians

In fencing and tennis as in life, responsibility is individual, not collective. All the more reason why Olga Kharlan did the right thing.
Neither Neymar (left) nor summer signing Lee Kang-in appeared for Paris Saint-Germain in the team's friendly against Inter at Tokyo's National Stadium on Tuesday.
SOCCER
Aug 1, 2023

Neymar sits out PSG's last Japan game in defeat to Inter

The Brazilian star, who is recovering from ankle surgery, drew loud cheers at the National Stadium but was not brought on by new manager Luis Enrique.
Tiger Woods will join five other players on the PGA Tour's policy board.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Aug 2, 2023

Tiger Woods joins PGA Tour's policy board as player director

The move is part of new governance and transparency measures announced by the Tour that promises to give players more say in future decisions.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe describes the Commonwealth Games as a "vital stepping stone" toward the Olympics.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Aug 2, 2023

Sebastian Coe sees future for troubled Commonwealth Games

The multisport event suffered a major setback last month when the Australian state of Victoria pulled out of hosting the 2026 edition.
New revelations about dreams and creativity could move people toward more balance, giving sleep and even naps much needed respectability.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 20, 2023

Want to be more creative? Try dream-hacking

New scientific methods are helping researchers understand how dreams can boost brainpower.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2023

Typhoon Khanun eases off Okinawa, but islands brace for return

The storm is forecast to make a sudden, sharp turn to the east and start heading north toward Japan's main islands.
Imma, a virtual influencer, is the face of Nomura’s new campaign for tax-free investment accounts.
BUSINESS
Aug 4, 2023

Nomura hires virtual influencer to coax Japan’s young investors

Boosting individual investments is particularly crucial as the country's baby-boomer generation passes on their assets to a younger generation.
Yuzuru Hanyu attends a photo session in Tokyo in September 2022.
MORE SPORTS / Figure skating
Aug 5, 2023

Figure skating icon Yuzuru Hanyu announces marriage

Hanyu, who did not reveal the identity of his partner, said he will continue to skate to show the best version of himself.
Almost every household in Yamagata has their own recipe for this dish of sliced and lightly sauced vegetables.
LIFE / Food & Drink / JAPANESE KITCHEN
Aug 6, 2023

Recipe: Yamagata’s famous summer veggie relish

Unlike in most of Japan, in Yamagata Prefecture, “dashi” can refer to this dish of finely chopped summer vegetables and herbs.
Already imprisoned Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny (second left) listens to his verdict over a series of extremism charges at the IK-6 penal colony, a maximum-security prison some 250 kilometers (155 miles) east of Moscow, on Friday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Aug 5, 2023

Putin critic Alexei Navalny has 19 years added to prison term

The jailed opposition figure said after said the sentence was designed to cow the Russian people into political submission.
Nadeshiko Japan players celebrate Risa Shimizu's goal in their 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup round-of-16 game against Norway in Wellington on Saturday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup / From the Spot
Aug 6, 2023

Nadeshiko Japan is back, but is Japan paying attention?

The team’s lack of media exposure and name recognition is a symptom of the Japan Football Association’s failure to capitalize on its 2011 world title.
The Netherlands' Jill Roord (right) celebrates her goal against South Africa in the round of 16 at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Sydney on Sunday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 6, 2023

Jill Roord on target as Dutch march past South Africa in last 16

The 54th-ranked African champion never gave up the fight and always threatened in its first appearance in the Women's World Cup knockout stage.
Japanese lawmaker Masatoshi Akimoto visits a high-speed rail project site in Ahmedabad, India, in May 2018.
JAPAN
Aug 6, 2023

Scandal-tainted Japanese lawmaker sought money to buy horse

Japanese lawmaker Masatoshi Akimoto is suspected of receiving ¥30 million from the president of a company between 2021 and this year.
Eisuke Sakakibara, former top finance official, says Japanese authorities are unlikely to intervene in foreign exchange markets to prop up the yen.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2023

Japan's 'Mr. Yen' Sakakibara expects no intervention

The yen has fallen around 14% since the Fed began rapidly raising rates to combat soaring inflation in March 2022.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump at an event in Columbia, South Carolina, on Saturday
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2023

Trump targets judge in 2020 election case

The former president has said he plans to seek U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan's recusal as well as a change of venue outside of Washington.
U.S. star Megan Rapinoe reacts after the team's loss against Sweden in the round of 16 at the Women's World Cup in Melbourne on Sunday. Rapinoe is among the U.S. veterans who might have played in the World Cup for the final time.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 7, 2023

United States' Women's World Cup exit signals end of dominant era

This edition of the Women's World Cup confirmed that the rest of the world has caught up to the Americans.
Taro Aso, a former prime minister and current vice president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks during the Ketagalan Forum in Taipei on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 8, 2023

Taiwan situation ‘tilting toward emergency,’ former Japan PM says

Taro Aso said this shift was “definitely not out of the blue” but was now “more evident,” pointing to military exercises by China around Taiwan.
Giorgia Meloni, Italy's prime minister, speaks during a joint news conference following her meeting with Olaf Scholz, Germany's chancellor, at the Chigi Palace in Rome on June 8.
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2023

Meloni’s Italian populism puts investors and China on notice

The prime minister is doubling down on a state-led approach to managing prosperity, unsettling markets and testing relations with China.
A demonstrator blocks a military vehicle in the city of Imphal on Aug. 3 during a protest against the killings of Kuki peoples amid ethnic violence in the Indian state of Manipur.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2023

India’s state of violence

The slow-burning horror in its northeastern state of Manipur has shaken the country and paralyzed its Parliament. And there is no resolution in sight.
Manchester City's Bernardo Silva (left) controls the ball in front of Arsenal's Oleksandr Zinchenko during their match in Manchester, England, on April 26.
SOCCER
Aug 10, 2023

Manchester City to begin title defense as Premier League favorite

The start of a new Premier League season is always a time of hope and dreams, even if defending champion Manchester City will probably be three points clear before its main rivals have kicked a ball this weekend.
Russia launches its first moon-landing spacecraft in the far eastern Amur region, Russia, in this still image from video taken on Friday.
WORLD
Aug 11, 2023

Russia launches first lunar lander in 47 years in race with India

India launched its own lander last month, and both the U.S. and China have programs targeting the lunar south pole.
Wales coach Warren Gatland (right) says Taulupe Faletau (not pictured) is not feeling any discomfort in his calf.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 11, 2023

Wales coach Warren Gatland expects Taulupe Faletau to play at World Cup

Wales coach Warren Gatland is "pretty confident" key backrow forward Taulupe Faletau will be fit to take his place in the squad for next month's Rugby World Cup in France.
Miss Indonesia Sonia Fergina Citra (left) and other contestants at the Miss Universe pageant in Bangkok in December 2018.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 13, 2023

Miss Universe cuts ties with Indonesia organizer accused of sexual harassment

Six Miss Universe Indonesia contestants filed complaints with police accusing organizers of sexual harassment.
Sydney Swail and Jolly, a young tabby cat, at an adoption event at Manhattan’s Animal Care Center in New York on Aug. 4
WORLD
Aug 13, 2023

Too many cats, too few vets: New York city animal shelters are bursting

Because of overcrowding, dogs at the Manhattan shelter are being kept in makeshift kennels in offices and stacks of cat cages line the halls.
Argentine presidential candidate Javier Milei (center) on stage at his campaign headquarters on the day of Argentina's primary elections, in Buenos Aires on Sunday
WORLD / Politics
Aug 14, 2023

Argentine far-right outsider posts shock win in primary election

With some 90% of ballots counted, far-right libertarian economist Javier Milei had 30.5% of the vote, far higher than predicted.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 14, 2023

South Korean embassy in Tokyo reports bomb threat

The embassy is investigating the possibility of the threat being a hoax, but it has also asked Japanese police to provide stepped up security.

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan