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Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws during the first inning of Game 4 against the Mets on Oct. 17.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 23, 2024

Flaherty to start World Series opener for Dodgers as Yamamoto gets Game 2

Yamamoto is 1-0 with a 5.11 ERA in three playoff starts and hasn't pitched beyond five innings in any of those outings.
Nanako Fujita competes during a race in 2019. The recent news of Fujita quitting after her suspension for breaking horse racing's strict phone rules shows that bad habits related to smartphone use don't discriminate.
MORE SPORTS / Horse Racing
Oct 25, 2024

Horse racing in Japan has a smartphone problem

Nanako Fujita's recent retirement over breaches of smartphone rules put a spotlight on a big issue for horse racing in Japan.
BayStars slugger Tyler Austin hit two homers against the Giants during the final stage of the Central League Climax Series.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 26, 2024

BayStars aim to complete Cinderella run against Hawks in the Japan Series

To say the Yokohama DeNA BayStars are underdogs against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in the Japan Series would be putting it mildly, but titles are not decided on paper.
Kazuhiro Soda’s “The Cats of Gokogu Shrine” follows not only the felines that live on the grounds of the title shrine in Ushimado, Okayama Prefecture, but also the local community members, many of whom are of retirement age.
CULTURE / Film
Oct 25, 2024

‘The Cats of Gokogu Shrine’: Documentary paints intimate portrait of a community in decline

While stray cats that inhabit the grounds of a local shrine take center stage, the film also celebrates the aging humans doing their best to preserve their neighborhood.
Andrea Galeano, head of amphibian and reptile collections at the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute, holds an Atelopus marinkellei frog captured during the Humboldt Institute's expeditions, in Villa de Leyva, Colombia, on Oct. 11.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Oct 28, 2024

Colombia's peace opened wildlife to discovery, but new violence frustrates progress

Colombia is now the world's most dangerous place for environmentalists, with 79 killed last year — the most ever in one country in a single year.
Then-manager Erik ten Hag celebrates with the trophy after Manchester United won the FA Cup on May 25.
SOCCER
Oct 29, 2024

Manchester United sack Erik ten Hag after woeful start to the season

United assistant coach and ex-striker Ruud van Nistelrooy will take over on an interim basis.
Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley leaves after attending a press conference hosted by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors to release its first annual report, at the Vatican on Tuesday.
WORLD / Society
Oct 30, 2024

Church must act faster against abusive priests, papal commission says

The detailed global report from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors was the first since the body was set up by Pope Francis in 2014.
A World Series public-viewing event in Oshu, Iwate Prefecture, on Wednesday.
BASEBALL
Oct 30, 2024

'A treasure': Win or lose, Ohtani is a hometown hero in Iwate

Anticipation was high among the roughly 60 supporters who gathered early in the morning to watch Ohtani and the Dodgers try to clinch the World Series.
Fans watch Game 5 of the World Series at Fields, a sports bar in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward, on Thursday morning.
BASEBALL
Oct 31, 2024

Fans gather early at Shibuya bar to watch Shohei Ohtani's big night

Game 5 of the World Series started at around 9 a.m. on Thursday for fans in Japan.
Akira Oishi (left) and Shinichi Okanobori have taken on the responsibility of surveying the flora and fauna of Mount Tenran and Mount Tonosu in Saitama Prefecture.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / Longform
Nov 2, 2024

Inside Japan's 100-year project to monitor its deteriorating biodiversity

With researchers and an army of volunteers on its side, the Monitoring Sites 1,000 project aims to bring attention to our fragile ecosystems.
People line up outside an Apple store in Beijing on Sept. 20.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 4, 2024

Buffett keeps cutting Apple stake, with value down 60% this year

Berkshire cut its Apple holdings by roughly 25% in the period, after cutting it by almost half in the second quarter.
Unattended picket signs are piled up outside a Boeing facility in Seattle on Monday, after unionized workers voted to end their strike.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 6, 2024

Boeing CEO in battle to mend rifts after bitter strike ends

The strike exposed divides that run right through the company.
Roki Sasaki in action for Japan against the Czech Republic in the World Baseball Classic in Tokyo in March 2023
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 12, 2024

Roki Sasaki and MLB: How effective would his pitching arsenal be?

Every team should be interested in Sasaki, who has been putting up some huge numbers in Japan.
Chinese Maritime Militia vessels are pictured near the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea on March 5.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 13, 2024

Philippines says China is pushing it to cede claims in South China Sea

The fifth meeting between Australia and the Philippines since August 2023 reflects growing security ties between them, with both having voiced concerns about China.
The Israeli team practices at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, France, on Wednesday.
SOCCER
Nov 14, 2024

Israel coach Ran Ben Shimon urges team to focus on soccer

Israel has urged its citizens to avoid attending cultural and sporting events abroad following last week's violence in Amsterdam.
Argentina's Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring against Bolivia during their World Cup qualifier in Buenos Aires on Oct. 15.
SOCCER
Nov 14, 2024

Paraguayan Football Association bans Lionel Messi shirts before match with Argentina

Paraguayan Football Association manager Fernando Villasboa warned the home crowd to wear only Paraguayan shirts to the match.
A factory in Kakamigahara, Gifu Prefecture. Even among profitable small and medium-sized enterprises, it is not uncommon for business owners to shut down due to aging and a lack of successors.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Nov 16, 2024

Japan issues warning over bad-faith buyers in small business M&As

As M&As gain attention as a viable option for business succession, measures are being introduced to raise awareness and safeguard companies.
Japan's Eri Hozumi (left) and Shuko Aoyama talk during their doubles match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani during the Billie Jean Cup in Malaga, Spain, on Saturday.
TENNIS
Nov 17, 2024

Japan comes up short at Billie Jean King Cup as Italy reaches semifinals

Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani earned a decisive victory over Shuko Aoyama and Eri Hozumi.
Super Typhoon Man-yi making landfall on the island of Luzon in the Philippines.
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 17, 2024

Super Typhoon Man-yi batters Philippines' most populous island

Man-yi was still packing maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour (115 miles per hour) after making its first landfall late Saturday on Catanduanes island.
Sony already has a 2% stake in Kadokawa and a stake in Kadokawa subsidiary FromSoftware, the developer of Elden Ring.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 19, 2024

Sony in talks to buy media powerhouse behind Elden Ring, sources say

The talks between the two sides are ongoing and, if successful, a deal could be signed in the coming weeks.
Many of the acts making their debut at this year's "Kohaku" song contest came out for the lineup announcement at NHK's studios in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 19, 2024

NHK announces Number_i, Illit and Glay for ‘Kohaku’ lineup

Acts from the former Johnny’s were frozen out for a second year as NHK opts for new names and old favorites.
A failed actor (Koji Seki, left) revisits memories of his ex-wife (Kano Ichiki) after learning about her unexpected death in “Performing Kaoru's Funeral.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2024

‘Performing Kaoru's Funeral’: Ambitious drama reflects on love that doesn’t die

Koji Seki brings gravitas to his role as a man tasked with serving as chief mourner for his dead ex-wife in Noriko Yuasa’s drama.
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 20, 2024

Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas

It would be hard to paint Ishiba's trip as a success, with the prime minister committing a series of diplomatic faux pas.
Asian banks are shifting focus from trade financing to wealth management and capital markets to offset potential losses from U.S. tariffs and capitalize on growing regional and global wealth.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 13, 2024

The wealthy will shield Asian banks from Trump tariffs

Asian banks are shifting focus from trade financing to wealth management and capital markets to offset potential losses from U.S. tariff.
The Italian team celebrates after winning the Billie Jean King Cup over Slovakia on Wednesday in Madrid.
TENNIS
Nov 21, 2024

Brilliant Paolini leads Italy to fifth Billie Jean King Cup title

A year after Italy suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Canada in the decider, the charismatic Paolini demolished her Slovakian opponent to clinch the title.
A tiny sample of radioactive debris retrieved by a robot from Japan's Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant will take at least half a year to analyze, its operator says.
JAPAN
Nov 21, 2024

Analysis of Fukushima debris sample could take a year, operator says

The analysis could shed light on radioactivity levels and the chemical structure of the fuel debris.
Japan's Kaito Kozono celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the United States in the eighth inning at Tokyo Dome on Thursday.
BASEBALL
Nov 21, 2024

Kaito Kozono hits two homers to power Samurai Japan to win over U.S. at Premier12

Japan extended its winning streak in international games to 25.
The private equity landscape is rapidly changing in Japan, where more than $12 billion in such transactions have been announced this year, after reaching a record in 2023.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 22, 2024

KKR-Bain brawl worth $4 billion highlights Japan private equity boom

The saga shows how fast the private equity landscape is changing in Japan, where more than $12 billion in such transactions have been announced this year.
Serbia's Novak Djokovic and Britain's Andy Murray shake hands at the net after Djokovic won the French Open final in June 2016.
TENNIS
Nov 24, 2024

Djokovic hires old rival and fellow 'game-changer' Murray as coach

Djokovic and Murray faced each other 36 times in their careers with the Serb winning 25 times.
Attendees walk past the COP29 logo during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Friday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 25, 2024

Climate finance's 'new era' shows new political realities

All sides acknowledge rich countries' promise of $300 billion a year in climate finance is not enough.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji