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Wrestlers with the Shikoroyama stable after a training session in Tokyo late last month.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jan 3, 2024

Opportunities abound for sumo's governing body as centenary nears

Much progress has been made in Japan’s national sport in recent years, but there's still work to be done to better cater to foreign fans.
Indian migrant women in Tokyo often face stifling social expectations. In contrast, they may feel empowered in more egalitarian societies like Berlin.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 3, 2024

How patriarchy perpetuates among Tokyo’s Indian migrants

Indian migrant women in Tokyo struggle to break free from the patriarchal structures they experienced back home. But in Berlin, a different picture emerges.
A scientist works on a quantum computer at the IBM Quantum lab in Yorktown Heights, New York.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 3, 2024

Your money may not survive a quantum heist

Prime numbers have served the internet age well, but the private sector and public authorities can no longer take their continued guardianship for granted.
Japan midfielder Kaoru Mitoma controls the ball during extra time of the team's Round of 16 match against Croatia at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Mitoma was named to the Samurai Blue squad for the upcoming Asian Cup despite an ankle injury.
SOCCER
Jan 4, 2024

Samurai Blue call on Mitoma to help erase Asian Cup 'frustration'

Brighton coach Roberto De Zerbi said late last year that Mitoma would be out for up to six weeks after hurting his ankle in a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace on Dec. 21.
A Ukrainian artillery unit operating a Swedish-made Archer self-propelled howitzer fires on Russian positions in the country's Donetsk region on Dec. 16.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2024

Russian revanchism must be defeated in Ukraine

The fact that Putin has violated numerous treaties would cast substantial doubt on the credibility of any deal.
January may be the month of new diets, but it doesn't have to be a month of short tempers as a result.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jan 6, 2024

Your 2024 diet isn't a blank check to be hangry

The neologism combining "hungry” and "angry” has been around since at least 1956 and made it into the Oxford English Dictionary in 2018.
Not only is Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” a billion-dollar blockbuster, it’s also a fun movie that’s full of heart.
CULTURE / Film
Jan 6, 2024

They can’t all be nominated for best picture, can they?

It’s a very competitive year for the top Oscar. With precursor awards like the Golden Globes coming soon, here’s what may make the cut.
Tokyo is considered a 15-minute city, where many residents live within a short walking or cycling distance from the shops and facilities they need.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2024

Don't let the culture wars sabotage 15-minute cities

In 15-minute cities, amenities can easily be reached on foot. Why are conspiracy theorists attacking the idea and what nuance is missing from the debate?
David Warner walks off the pitch in his final test cricket match on Saturday in Sydney.
MORE SPORTS / Cricket
Jan 6, 2024

Entertainer Warner bows out of cricket test game a winner

Australia opener David Warner said he hoped to be remembered as an entertainer after retiring from cricket's longest format at his home ground in the wake of a third test victory over Pakistan on Saturday.
Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set for a fifth term in office following polls that her opponents and voters have boycotted.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 8, 2024

Bangladesh prime minister extends rule in poll shunned by rivals

Voters heeded a campaign by the opposition to shun the election and draw attention to the sweeping crackdown Sheikh Hasina's government carried out in its run-up.
In late 2023, a Chinese hacker group was blamed for an attack that compromised a Philippine government agency around the same time the two countries clashed in the South China Sea.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 8, 2024

Philippines turns to hackers amid Chinese cyberthreat

In a November report, a Chinese group known as Stately Taurus was blamed for an attack that had compromised a Philippine government agency for five days earlier in 2023.
Poland's Iga Swiatek serves against Germany's Angelique Kerber during their women's singles final match at the United Cup tennis event in Sydney on Sunday.
TENNIS
Jan 9, 2024

Swiatek tunes out the noise in search of first Australian Open title

The player got 2024 underway by winning all of her singles matches at the United Cup mixed team tournament, helping Poland to the final.
U.S. golfer Tiger Woods reacts on the 9th green on day 2 of the British Open Golf Championship in 2022.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 9, 2024

Tiger Woods and Nike end partnership after 27 years

Despite rumors, Nike maintains that it’s still committed to golf.
New Zealand's Beauden Barrett scores his team's first try against France in their Rugby World Cup 2023 final match in Saint-Denis, France, on Oct. 28.
MORE SPORTS
Jan 9, 2024

Robertson wants overseas players to be available for All Blacks

Opinion on the issue is divided among players and coaches.
Columbia University researchers have found that on average, bottled water contain 110,000 to 370,000 tiny plastic particles in each liter, 90% of them nanoplastics.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Jan 9, 2024

Bottled water has more plastic particles than previously thought

The discovery of nanoplastics, which could not be detected until recently, suggests that health concerns linked to plastic pollution may be dramatically underestimated.
The Shika nuclear plant in Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 4
JAPAN
Jan 10, 2024

Three-meter tsunami recorded at Japan nuclear plant after quake

The plant is 11 meters above sea level and protected by a 4-meter seawall built after the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Activists protest outside the offices of the Australian Immigration Department in Sydney in February 2016
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2024

The danger of talking down immigration Down Under

Australians are facing an economic dilemma Down Under amid an unsettling debate over immigration policies.
A supporter of KMT presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih in Taipei on Tuesday
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 10, 2024

Cross-strait relations hang in the balance with Taiwan election

Despite voter fatigue with the DPP and Lai Ching-te’s own lackluster campaign, his opponents have failed to articulate a compelling alternative.
A triathlon Olympic test event in the River Seine in August of last year. Local authorities still have thousands of new sewer connections and key storm-water infrastructure to finish in the next few months ahead of the Games.
OLYMPICS
Jan 11, 2024

Paris Olympics chief insists River Seine will host opening ceremony

French security services have consistently raised doubts about having the opening team parade on the river in the heart of the City of Light.
Fiction such as Asako Yuzuki’s “Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder” and nonfiction like Robert Whiting’s "Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers & Spies: The Outsiders who Shaped Modern Japan” are just a taste of 2024's exciting releases.
CULTURE / Books
Jan 11, 2024

Anticipated translations and books about Japan to brighten your 2024

From debut novels to classic crime thrillers, the year ahead promises a wealth of must-read titles to add to your reading list.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with U.S. President Joe Biden in Tokyo in May 2022.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 11, 2024

A critical year for the Japan-U.S. alliance

The foundation of the Japan-U.S. partnership is a belief in the need to support and maintain the rules-based global order.
Grounded Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 airplanes on the tarmac at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Monday
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 11, 2024

Boeing's latest Max problem creates more headaches for airlines

Alaska Airlines and United Airlines together have 70% of the Max 9 planes in service and have canceled hundreds of flights.
Yoshimi Yamashita is set to become the first woman to referee at the men's Asian Cup on Saturday.
SOCCER
Jan 12, 2024

Japan's Yamashita to become first woman to referee at men's Asian Cup

Yamashita, who was a fourth official at the 2022 men's World Cup, is one of five women who will serve as match officials at the tournament in Qatar.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jan 12, 2024

Winds of change swirl at the top of sumo ahead of New Year meet

Kirishima has his sights set on promotion to yokozuna, while major questions surround injury-plagued Terunofuji.
Naomi Osaka attends a news conference in Melbourne on Friday ahead of the start of the Australian Open.
TENNIS
Jan 12, 2024

It's a changed landscape at the top as Osaka returns to the Australian Open

2023 was all about the continued rise of players like Gauff and Sabalenka and the dominance of Swiatek, and it remains to be seen where Osaka fits in that picture.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 13, 2024

China and Taiwan focus of top U.S. and Japanese diplomats' talks

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken “stressed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait."
People cool off on a beach in Rio de Janeiro in November amid a heat wave.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jan 13, 2024

El Nino could make 2024 hotter than record-setting 2023

The U.S. NOAA predicted there is a 1 in 3 chance that 2024 will be warmer than 2023 — and a 99% certainty that 2024 will rank among the five warmest years ever.
Real Sociedad's Takefusa Kubo during a Champions League match in San Sebastian, Spain, in September.
SOCCER
Jan 13, 2024

Ex-Barcelona junior Kubo set for lift-off with Japan at Asian Cup

The 22-year-old has found his feet at Real Sociedad this season, scoring six goals and helping the club top its Champions League group.
A screen displays the Nikkei 225 Stock Average figure on the trading floor at the Nomura Securities headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 13, 2024

Tokyo stocks find their mojo as bubble-era highs draw nearer

The roaring start to 2024 looks to be on far more solid ground than last time stocks reached these levels as investors bet the country is escaping deflation.
NBA players take part in a training session in Johannesburg in 2015. The Basketball Africa League, now entering its fourth season, is the NBA’s sole professional league outside the U.S., and its most ambitious international expansion since it attempted to break through in China two decades ago on the coattails of Hall of Fame center Yao Ming.
BASKETBALL
Jan 14, 2024

NBA’s Africa league struggles to find fans as it faces mounting losses

The Basketball Africa League is the NBA’s sole professional league outside the U.S., and its most ambitious international expansion in years.

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