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Members of the Romanian Olympic women's gymnastics team check their smartphones during a training session early last month.
OLYMPICS
Aug 2, 2024

Social media trolls beware: Olympic athletes have had enough

Online abuse has become such an issue that the Japanese Olympic Committee released a statement asking fans to mind their manners on the internet.
Jailed Russian opposition figure Vladimir Kara-Murza stands behind a glass wall of an enclosure for defendants during a court hearing to consider an appeal against his prison sentence, in Moscow on July 31, 2023.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 2, 2024

Poisoned and jailed: Kremlin critic Kara-Murza

Convicted in April 2023 of treason and spreading "false information," Kara-Murza was sentenced to one of the longest prison terms ever handed down to a Putin critic.
Gold medal-winning judoka Teddy Riner of France celebrates his victory at the Paris Olympics in the French capital on Friday.
OLYMPICS / Judo
Aug 3, 2024

France's Teddy Riner reigns supreme with record fourth gold

The judoka now has three individual titles — a record shared with Japan's Tadahiro Nomura, who won three consecutive titles in the -60kg category in 1996, 2000 and 2004.
Summer McIntosh celebrates after winning the women's 200-meter individual medley for her third gold medal of the Paris Olympics.
OLYMPICS / Swimming
Aug 4, 2024

McIntosh makes Canadian history with third gold

The 17-year-old swimmer did it in an Olympic record time of 2 minutes, 6.56 seconds, taking down the 2016 record of 2:06.58 set by Hungary's Katinka Hosszu.
Fuka Nagano (left) and Hinata Miyazawa after Japan was eliminated from the Olympic soccer tournament by the U.S. on Saturday in Paris.
OLYMPICS
Aug 4, 2024

For Nadeshiko Japan, the quarterfinals prove to be a stumbling block — again

The team fell 1-0 to the U.S. after also losing in the last eight at the Tokyo Games in 2021 and at the Women’s World Cup in 2023.
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes Russian nationals, including Artyom Dultsev, Anna Dultseva, convicted of spying in Slovenia, and their children at 
an airport in Moscow on Thursday following a prisoner exchange with Western countries.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 4, 2024

Russia’s prisoner trade says all you need to know about Putin

Among those released to Russia were people convicted by independent courts of cybercrimes, insider trading and breaking sanctions.
Supporters of badmington gold medalists Wang Chi-Lin and Lee Yang at the victory ceremony on Sunday in Paris
OLYMPICS / Badminton
Aug 5, 2024

Taiwan cheers Olympics badminton triumph over China in politically charged contest

Wang Chi-Lin and Lee Yang of Taiwan, the reigning champions from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, won a three-game thriller against China's Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang.
Hundreds gathered near Beirut's port on Sunday to mark four years since a catastrophic blast (pictured), one of history's biggest non-nuclear explosions, killed more than 220 people, injured at least 6,500 and devastated swaths of Lebanon's capital.
WORLD
Aug 5, 2024

Four years and no justice: Lebanon marks port blast anniversary

Nobody has been held responsible for the August 4, 2020 blast — one of history's biggest non-nuclear explosions.
The entrance gate of the SEG electronics market in Shenzhen, China, on June 27.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 5, 2024

With smugglers and front companies, China is skirting U.S. AI bans

The U.S. worries advanced semiconductors could help China develop superior weaponry, launch cyberattacks and make faster decisions on the battlefield.
People pray at the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima to mark the anniversary of the dropping of the A-bomb in 1945. Over half a century on, the global framework to stop nuclear weapons proliferation needs a serious rethink.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 5, 2024

What stands in the way of a nuclear weapon-free world?

Almost 80 years after the A-bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the world is still far from abolishing nuclear weapons due to a crumbling of the nonproliferation architecture.
Britain's Keely Hodgkinson crosses the line to win the women's 800-meter final at the Paris Olympics on Monday.
OLYMPICS / Athletics
Aug 6, 2024

In her teens, this British runner struggled to walk. Now she's an Olympic champion.

The 22-year-old buried a reputation for being always the bridesmaid and never the bride as she stormed to victory.
Brazil's Bruna Alexandre serves during her singles match in the team event on Monday at the Paris Olympics.
OLYMPICS / Table tennis
Aug 6, 2024

Brazil's Alexandre makes historic Olympic debut as she eyes Paralympic gold

Alexandre became just the third athlete to compete at both the Olympics and Paralympics on Monday as a member of Brazil's table tennis team.
Kenichiro Fumita celebrates after his win over China's Cao Liguo in their men's Greco-roman 60 kg wrestling final match at the Champ-de-Mars Arena in Paris on Tuesday.
OLYMPICS
Aug 7, 2024

Japan's Kenichiro Fumita wins Greco-Roman gold in 60 kg

Fumita claimed the first wrestling gold of the Paris Olympics by beating Cao Liguo of China, who settled for silver.
Algeria's Imane Khelif celebrates after she won her semifinal bout in the women's 66-kg event at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday.
OLYMPICS / Boxing
Aug 7, 2024

Boxer Khelif puts gender dispute aside to reach final as fans flock to support her

Khelif delivered a flawless performance against Thailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng in front of the massed Algerian fans in Paris.
High School peace messengers call for abolition of nuclear weapons in front of the United Nations headquarters in New York in November.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 7, 2024

Hiroshima student activist calls for abolition of nuclear weapons

Yukiko Ouchi established an organization promoting peace to pass down the voices of hibakusha to younger generations.
Japan's Kenichiro Fumita (below) wrestles China's Cao Liguo in their Olympic men's Greco-Roman 60-kg gold-medal match at the Champ de Mars Arena in Paris.
OLYMPICS
Aug 7, 2024

Fumita's road to Greco-Roman gold began right after silver disappointment in Tokyo

Fumita's gold medal came three years after his silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 prompted him to change his strategy.
A lot of female fans of Japan's men's team caught volleyball fever at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, where Japan qualified for the quarterfinals for the first time in 29 years.
OLYMPICS / Volleyball
Aug 7, 2024

Tears and broken hearts: Japan's female volleyball fans react to tough Olympic loss

Japan’s fierce love for volleyball has been on display for all the world to see in Paris, but it was not meant to be for the men's team in 2024.
Shigekix, whose real name is Shigeyuki Nakarai, in action during the world championships in Leuven, Belgium, in September
OLYMPICS / Breaking
Aug 7, 2024

From the Bronx to Paris: Breaking set for its Olympic close-up

B-boys and B-girls from across the globe will soon compete in Olympic dance battles that feature intricate steps, acrobatic moves and plenty of flair.
The Japanese figure skaters who competed in the team event at the Beijing Olympics pose for a photo during a ceremony at the Paris Games on Wednesday.
OLYMPICS / Figure skating
Aug 8, 2024

Japan figure skaters finally get medals two years after team event at Beijing Olympics

Japan earned silver in the team competition in Beijing.
Vinesh Phogat of India (in red) wrestles Yusneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba in the women's 50-kg semifinals on Tuesday at the Paris Olympics. Phogat was later disqualified for being 100 grams over the weight limit.
OLYMPICS
Aug 8, 2024

Disqualification costs India a medal, but its Olympic future still looks bright

Vinesh Phogat had a chance to win a first Olympic gold for Indian women. But even after he disqualification, the country's female athletes have a promising future.
Naomi Osaka serves to Ons Jabeur during her first round match in Toronto on Wednesday.
TENNIS
Aug 8, 2024

Osaka defeats Jabeur to advance in WTA Toronto opener

The four-time Grand Slam champion needed only 72 minutes to eliminate ninth-seeded Jabeur.
Muslims pray in the Abdullah Quilliam Mosque in Liverpool on Tuesday, amid rioting across the U.K. in which mosques and Muslims have been targets.
WORLD
Aug 8, 2024

Muslims feel 'terrorized' by U.K. riots as mosques brace for violence

Tell MAMA, a group which monitors anti-Muslim incidents, has received five times more reports of anti-Muslim behavior from across the U.K. in the past week.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 9, 2024

Trump offers three September debates against surging Harris

Donald Trump has found himself on unfamiliar ground as something of a bystander, eclipsed by Kamala Harris' rise as he has scaled back his own campaigning.
France's Victor Wembanyama celebrates after Les Bleus won their semifinal match over Germany at the Paris Olympics on Thursday.
OLYMPICS / Basketball
Aug 9, 2024

Wembanyama says Olympic final 'once-in-a-lifetime' chance

The hosts returned to the final for the second straight Olympics after defeating Germany 73-69 on Thursday, and will take on the United States for the title.
Taxis wait for fares outside the airport in Wuhan, China. Ride-hailing and taxi drivers are among the first workers globally to face the threat of job loss from artificial intelligence, experts say.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 9, 2024

China's drivers worry as robotaxis pick up pace — and passengers

Automating jobs could benefit China in the long run given a shrinking population, economists said.
Moved by an experience with a local hunter, Shota Sasaki has since focused on elevating the image of game meat in Japan.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Destination Restaurants
Aug 11, 2024

Elezo Esprit: A visceral celebration of Hokkaido’s wild game

Game meat specialist Elezo Esprit has hunters on staff who are directed to ensure the animals they supply arrive at the butchery within an hour of being killed.
An archival photo depicting a CWAJ board meeting from April 6, 1966
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Aug 15, 2024

From the division of war, 75 years of intercultural aid

Celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, the mission of the College Women’s Association of Japan remains straightforward yet ambitious: Women supporting women.
Children attend a class at a Brazilian school in Seto, Aichi Prefecture, in April 2020.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 9, 2024

Over 8,500 foreign children in Japan may not be in school, ministry says

The number of such children grew by 418 from a year before, according to a ministry survey of education boards of 1,741 municipalities.
Across Japan, sports fans are sacrificing a good night’s sleep to catch their favorite Olympics events and beloved athletes.
OLYMPICS
Aug 9, 2024

Sleepless in Japan: How to recover from ‘Olympic fever’

The Paris Olympics are just about done, so sleep-deprived sports junkies can take comfort in the fact that they’ll soon be able to get a full night’s rest.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Monday as selloffs in global markets, including Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, deepened amid concerns about a slowdown in the global economy.
EDITORIALS
Aug 9, 2024

BOJ rate hike spooked markets, but it's not the sole culprit

Unwinding decades of loose monetary policy was always going to be challenging, and the global economy must brace for similar adjustments from other central banks.

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A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami