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OLYMPICS
May 2, 2020

Left in limbo: Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls struggle with postponement

Tokyo's Olympic dream is still alive — for now — but many athletes have been left wondering if their hard work will all be for nothing.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS / OLYMPIC NOTEBOOK
Nov 5, 2016

Gold in 1964 Tokyo Games set Cassell on life path

From humble roots growing up in a coal mining camp in Wise County, Virginia, Ollan Cassell built a successful, inspiring career in track and field.
OLYMPICS
Jul 17, 2021

Japan’s Olympic history

Looking back at some of Japan's most memorable moments at the games since the country's 1912 debut in Stockholm.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 7, 2021

Trouble stirs amid the quest for gold and glory

Was it an ominous premonition or just another blunder by a gaffe-prone politician?
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Feb 19, 2022

Bots and fake accounts push China’s vision of winter Olympic wonderland

Inside the Potemkin village of China’s propaganda, the Winter Olympics have unfolded as an unalloyed success, a celebration of sports and political harmony that has obscured — critics say whitewashed — the country’s flaws and rights abuses.
JAPAN
Feb 16, 2021

The next boss of the Tokyo Games — a savvy operator or a fresh face?

The organizing committee says it is looking for a successor that has a certain background in the Olympics as well as a strong awareness of gender equality and inclusiveness.
JAPAN / GEARING UP FOR THE GAMES
Jan 6, 2017

Japan aims to overcome language and cultural barriers before 2020 Games

Last of six parts
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Feb 16, 2022

Competing in the Winter Games, without a snowball’s chance

Some competitors have been able to make it to the Olympics in part because of a change in qualifying criteria aimed at producing a more diverse field — a change that has garnered scrutiny.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Feb 9, 2022

How Olympians embraced mental health after Simone Biles showed the way

The American gymnast's public struggles gave other Olympians tacit permission to share their vulnerabilities. Some of them have.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 28, 2022

For Olympic sponsors, ‘China is an exception’

The U.S. and a handful of other nations may have declared a 'diplomatic boycott” of the Winter Games, but some of the world's most famous brands will still be there.
OLYMPICS
Jul 22, 2021

For karateka at the Games, the goal is gold. For karate the sport, the goal is inclusion.

Karate is getting its moment to shine at the Olympics, but are the Games simply catching up to something a lot of us already know?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 25, 2021

Suga stares down Japan's Olympic challenge

Whether or not to go ahead with the already-delayed Summer Games is a decision fraught with implications, and not only for public health.
OLYMPICS
Jul 31, 2020

How the postponement ended the Olympic dreams of athletes

Some athletes have chosen not to wait another year to participate in the delayed Tokyo Games.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Mar 5, 2020

Judo standouts Funa Tonaki, Naohisa Takato set lofty goals for 2020 Games

Funa Tonaki and Naohisa Takato aim to give the Japan national judo team a boost by winning gold medals on July 25, when the judo competition kicks off at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
MORE SPORTS
Jul 13, 2016

Table tennis 'sisters' hoping to grab gold for Japan

“The three sisters” are all different in terms of age and personality. What they have in common, however, are places on the strongest women's table tennis squad Japan has ever dispatched.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 3, 2015

The first Olympic hurdle should be voter support

Making plebiscites obligatory for all bidding cities could be the first step toward restoring the tattered reputation of the Olympics.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jun 23, 2013

ASIJ student McNeill helping to boost Tokyo 2020's bid

There are no definitive guidelines in place, no simple slogans summarizing how individuals and groups should support or oppose an Olympic bid. Of course, it's up to them.
IOC presidential candidate Morinari Watanabe speaks during a news conference in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Thursday.
OLYMPICS
Jan 31, 2025

IOC presidential contenders make pitches to voters

They are vying to succeed Thomas Bach as arguably the most powerful person in global sports.
Former U.S. figure skaters Dick Button and Tenley Albright are introduced during an exhibition event after the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Boston in January 2014.
MORE SPORTS / Figure skating
Jan 31, 2025

U.S. figure skating great Dick Button dies at 95

Long before he became known for his on-air observations, Button dominated the figure skating world with his athleticism.
IPC President Andrew Parsons poses for photos before a news conference at the Milano Cortina 2026 Organising Committee headquarters in Milan, Italy.
PARALYMPICS
Mar 7, 2025

IPC chief tasks sports with setting own rules for transgender athletes

The Olympic Games and the Paralympics currently allow transgender athletes to compete.
Ilia Malinin skates during an exhibition in Boston on March 30.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 16, 2025

Skating 'Quad God' Malinin ready for Olympic favorite tag

The American, known as the "Quad God," for his dazzling arsenal of quadruple jumps, will be competing in Tokyo this week for the World Team Trophy.
Sebastian Coe speaks at a news conference during an International Olympic Committee session in Mumbai on Saturday.
OLYMPICS
Oct 15, 2023

Sebastian Coe says IOC made 'only decision' in banning Russia

The IOC's move came after the Russian Olympic Committee recognized regional organizations from four annexed Ukrainian territories.
Ukrainian Paralympic Committee President Valeriy Sushkevych has said a recent vote to allow Russian athletes to compete at the Paris Games was tainted.
PARALYMPICS
Dec 3, 2023

Ukrainians strive to force IPC into Russia Paralympics U-turn

Sushkevych says he has "new facts" that reveal the extent of the Russian Paralympic Committee's support for the war in Ukraine.
Australia's Mack Horton celebrates after winning gold in the men's 400 freestyle final at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia, on April 5, 2018.
MORE SPORTS / Swimming
Jan 22, 2024

Australian swimming star Mack Horton retires ahead of Olympics

Horton, a fierce anti-doping campaigner, called time on his career on Sunday just months ahead of the Paris Olympics.
Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge speaks during a news conference ahead of the Tokyo Marathon on Friday.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Mar 2, 2024

Kipchoge pays tribute to Kiptum ahead of Tokyo Marathon

Kipchoge is preparing to compete in Sunday's Tokyo Marathon in his first race since his Kenyan compatriot was killed on Feb. 11.

Longform

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