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Yonaguni Mayor Kenichi Itokazu speaks to a Ground Self-Defense Force soldier at the town hall on Yonaguni, Japan's westernmost inhabited island in Okinawa Prefecture last  November.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2024

Deterring Taiwan conflict is top priority for Japan's ‘front-line’ mayor

The mayor believes the U.S. and Japan must do away with "strategic ambiguity" over Taiwan if they intend to keep China in check.
Travis Kelce has eight catches in the Chiefs' first three games this season.
SPORTS / Football
Sep 26, 2024

Chiefs star Travis Kelce more worried about wins than catches

Kelce has just eight catches for 69 yards in three games this season.
Fever guard Caitlin Clark tries to dribble past the Sun's Veronica Burton during Game 2 of their playoff series in Uncasville, Connecticut, on Sunday.
BASKETBALL
Sep 26, 2024

Fever star Caitlin Clark confident best yet to come following playoff exit

The 22-year-old broke the single-season assists record (337), smashed the rookie scoring record with 769 points.
Eric Adams, mayor of New York, exits a weekly news conference at City Hall in New York in 2023.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Sep 27, 2024

NYC mayor was corrupt for years, U.S. claims in scathing case

The indictment calls into question the political future of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who is in charge of running the biggest U.S. city.
Cucina Salve's wild herb salad is a example of chef Hiroshi Tsubouchi's commitment to creating dishes with as little artificial additives as possible.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 29, 2024

Neither allergies nor ADHD could stop chef Hiroshi Tsubouchi

A childhood of hardships led this Chichibu-based chef to embrace an organic philosophy for all his dishes.
Helping your child through their first experience with a school bully can be a difficult situation to navigate — doubly so if you're trying to do so as a non-Japanese resident in Japan.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Sep 30, 2024

What’s a mother to do when your non-Japanese child is bullied in school?

The school experience in conformist Japan can be difficult for students who don't share things like skin color and language in common with their fellow classmates.
A fan holds a sign with a message about missing the Oakland Coliseum during an Athletics game at the stadium on Sept. 8.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 27, 2024

Athletics pay emotional farewell to Oakland in last home game before move

The Athletics are following the path of the Raiders and moving to Las Vegas, where they are expected to play their first home games in 2028.
USA captain Jim Furyk and International team captain Mike Weir shake hands before the first round of The Presidents Cup golf tournament in Quebec on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Sep 27, 2024

U.S. sweeps International team 5-0 on Day 1 of Presidents Cup

The 5-0 count marked the first sweep of a four-ball session for the U.S. since the 1994 Presidents Cup.
Musician Koshi Inaba is the latest artist to be featured on national broadcaster NHK’s Tiny Desk Concerts Japan. Based on a series from America’s National Public Radio, Japan’s version has spotlighted acts that you likely wouldn’t see stateside, like veteran rockers Kirinji and upstart pop artist yama.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 28, 2024

NHK furthers global reach with Tiny Desk Concerts Japan

Musician Koshi Inaba delivered a rollicking set for the stripped-down music series that brings cherry-picked Japanese acts you likely wouldn’t see stateside to new ears.
Dame Maggie Smith, a star of the stage, film and television, died Sept. 27 in London. She was 89. The actor is pictured here in 2015.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Sep 27, 2024

'National treasure' U.K. actor Maggie Smith dies aged 89

Over the course of her long career, Dame Maggie Smith won a Tony, two Oscars, three Golden Globes and five Bafta Awards.
Having grown up in North Carolina, where people are chatty and friendly, Duane Levi says Kansai and Osaka in particular had a similar vibe.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Sep 27, 2024

Duane Levi: 'Once you are able to create something that has sustainability … you’re going to get help and support.'

Unable to get a job in PA and recording, Duane Levi forged his own path in the Japanese music scene and has introduced many artists to the market here.
Visitors take photos of Shin Shin at Ueno zoo in Tokyo on Saturday. Saturday was the last chance for Japan's panda-lovers to see Shin Shin and Ri Ri before their return to China.
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2024

Japan's legions of panda-lovers bid farewell to beloved pair in Tokyo

Avid fans of the pandas congregated outside Ueno zoo overnight to secure a spot in line to see the pair for one minute each.
Kei Nishikori hits a return against Jordan Thompson during their second-round match at the Japan Open in Tokyo on Saturday.
TENNIS
Sep 28, 2024

Kei Nishikori advances to quarters at a Japan Open full of upsets

In other action, fifth seed Tommy Paul became the latest top player to make an early exit as he lost to Tomas Machac in the second round on Saturday.
South Africa lock Eben Etzebeth (back left), flanker Siya Kolisi (left, front) and their teammates celebrate after the Springboks secured the Rugby Championship with a win over Argentina on Saturday in Mbombela, South Africa.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 29, 2024

Kolisi hails record-breaking Etzebeth as Springboks exact revenge

Etzebeth, 32, played the entire 80 minutes in Mbombela as he overtook Victor Matfield and became the most capped Springbok with 128 caps.
The U.S. team celebrates after winning the Presidents Cup in Montreal on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Sep 30, 2024

U.S. tops Internationals to continue Presidents Cup dominance

The U.S. team featured 12 of the world's 25 top-ranked players and won fights late in matches to continue its domination of the event.
Kei Nishikori hits a return against Holger Rune during their Japan Open quarterfinal match on Sunday.
TENNIS
Sep 30, 2024

Kei Nishikori misses out on semifinal spot after Holger Rune fights back from brink

Rune, the No. 6 six seed, came back from the brink to win four straight games and end the Japanese veteran's challenge in front of a lively crowd in Tokyo.
France's Ugo Humbert hits a return against Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic during their men's singles semifinal match at the ATP Japan Open tennis tournament in Tokyo on Monday.
TENNIS
Oct 1, 2024

Humbert to face Fils in all-French Japan Open final

Tuesday's match will be the first all-French final on the ATP tour in four years.
LeBron James of the Lakers speaks to members of the media in El Segundo, California, on Monday.
BASKETBALL / NBA
Oct 1, 2024

LeBron James 'given life' by playing alongside son and winning Olympic gold

James said he felt reinvigorated by the "pure joy" of being able to go work with one of his children.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani on deck in the ninth inning against the Rockies in Denver on Sept. 28.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 1, 2024

How far will Japanese players go in this year’s MLB playoffs?

The 2024 postseason begins on Tuesday, when another group of players will have the chance to join the ranks of Japanese World Series champions.
JR Tokai officials send off the Nozomi No. 1 bullet train bound for Hakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, at Tokyo Station on Tuesday as the Tokaido Shinkansen marked the 60th anniversary of its services the same day.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 2024

Tokaido Shinkansen marks 60th anniversary

A commemorative ceremony was held by Central Japan Railway at Tokyo Station to send off the first train of the day.
A pedestrian walks past a 7-Eleven convenience store in Tokyo. The Japanese model for a convenience store is gaining fans overseas where similar stores sell mostly gasoline and junk food.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 1, 2024

Making a habit of describing your morning convenience store run

Hitting up the local convenience store before or after work can wind up becoming habitual, and there are a number of grammar points to help describe it.
Dani Alderman, 31, who was diagnosed in May 2023 with triple negative breast cancer, at her apartment in Manhattan on Sunday
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 2, 2024

Breast cancer cases continue to rise among younger women, study finds

One in 50 U.S. women will develop invasive breast cancer by age 50, according to the American Cancer Society report.
France's Arthur Fils celebrates with the winner's trophy after his victory over Ugo Humbert in the men's singles final of the Japan Open in Tokyo on Tuesday.
TENNIS
Oct 2, 2024

Fils saves match point to beat Humbert in all-French Japan Open final

Fils, the world No. 24, came back from the brink in the second set to edge his Paris Olympics doubles partner in a little over three hours in Tokyo.
For one night in Tokyo last month, Daniel Calvert (left) and Quique Dacosta brought their wildly different culinary styles together into a remarkable service.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 6, 2024

A meeting of Michelin minds at Tokyo's Sezanne

Daniel Calvert says no to most requests for pop-ups at two-Michelin-starred Sezanne — except when the chance to work with three-starred Quique Dacosta came up.
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2024

Masamitsu Yoshioka, last Pearl Harbor bombardier, dies at 106

"I’m ashamed that I’m the only one who survived and lived such a long life,” Yoshioka said in an interview last year.
Ayami Sato is one of the best female players in baseball history.
BASEBALL
Oct 3, 2024

Japan great Ayami Sato helps shine light on women's baseball in new documentary

Ayami Sato has helped Japan win six straight Women's Baseball World Cup titles.
Sakie Yokota shares her thoughts ahead of her abducted daughter's 60th birthday, on Thursday in Kawasaki.
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2024

Sakie Yokota expresses hopes for a reunion on daughter's 60th birthday

Megumi Yokota was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at the age of 13. If a reunion is realized, "I just hope to hug her silently," Sakie said.
Cameron Lew, who makes music under the name Ginger Root, recently released “Shinbangumi,” an album that was influenced by the glimmering pop echoes of Japan in the 1980s as well as the nerviness of Devo, the loose rock-pop of Hall & Oates and even Haruomi Hosono’s ’70s explorations of exotica.
CULTURE / Music
Oct 5, 2024

Ginger Root expands on effervescent retro sound

New release "Shinbangumi" comes after a whirlwind year for the American artist who blends glittering pop echoes of 1980s Japan with a mish-mash of Western influences.
Francesco Bagnaia races to a win during the Japan MotoGP in Motegi, Tochigi Prefecture, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 6, 2024

Bagnaia wins Japan MotoGP ahead of championship leader Martin

The Italian defending world champion Bagnaia overtook pole-sitter Pedro Acosta on the first lap at Motegi and stayed in the lead to finish 1.189 seconds ahead of Martin.
Takayuki Suzuki won a gold, two silvers and a bronze medal during the Paris Paralympics.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 7, 2024

Paralympic star Takayuki Suzuki hopes to raise visibility of people with disabilities

Takayuki Suzuki won four medals, including one gold, during the Paris Paralympics.

Longform

In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan