Four-time reigning Olympic wrestling champion Kaori Icho has not entered next month's national championships, ending her bid for a fifth consecutive gold medal, the Japan Wrestling Federation revealed Saturday. The 35-year-old Icho, who was unable to secure a spot in the women's 57-kg division for ...
New National Stadium declared finished nearly eight months ahead of Tokyo Olympics
The new National Stadium was officially completed on Saturday when the centerpiece for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics was handed over to its owner and operator, the Japan Sport Council. Created by architect Kengo Kuma's office, construction giant Taisei Corp. and design firm Azusa Sekkei ...
Russia on Thursday hit back at a proposed four-year ban on the country's athletes, denouncing accusations of a doping cover-up as a politically motivated attempt to block its athletes from competing. A committee of the World Anti-Doping Agency on Monday made a bombshell recommendation for ...
Athletes who missed 1980 Olympics due to boycott will be invited to 2020 Games
Japanese Olympic Committee President Yasuhiro Yamashita said Wednesday the JOC is planning to invite athletes who missed out on the 1980 Moscow Olympics, due to Japan's boycott, to next year's Tokyo Olympics. Speaking at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Yamashita revealed the JOC ...
Should Fukushima food be served at the Olympics?
For years, the government has sought to convince consumers that food from Fukushima is safe despite the nuclear disaster. But will it serve the prefecture's produce at the Tokyo Olympics? It's a thorny subject for the authorities. They pitched the Olympics in part as a ...
Three U.S. women surf for two Olympic berths, world championship
The World Surf League's 2019 women's championship tour is heading for a high-stakes finish wrapped up in red, white and blue. Three Americans — Carissa Moore, Lakey Peterson and Caroline Marks — will be surfing for their country's two Olympic berths as well as the ...
WADA panel recommends neutral status for Russia at 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Russian athletes should be forced to compete as neutrals at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and other major events, a key World Anti-Doping Agency panel recommended on Monday. WADA's compliance review committee proposed a four-year ban on hosting major events in Russia and a ban ...
Akira Sone becomes first judoka to make Japan's 2020 Olympic team
Akira Sone became Japan's first judoka for next year's Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. The All Japan Judo Federation named the 19-year-old to next year's team after she won the over-78-kg championship at the Grand Slam Osaka. The federation had announced it would hold a vote ...
IOC chief Thomas Bach asked to intervene in Tokyo Olympic labor dispute
An international trade union wants IOC President Thomas Bach to intervene and investigate alleged labor and safety violations at venues being built for next year's Tokyo Olympics. The Building and Wood Workers' International has been critical for several years of workers' rights at Olympic venues. ...
Japanese and English languages present in run-up to Tokyo Olympics, but where's French?
The French language has been almost invisible during the drawn-out preparations for next year's Tokyo Olympics. News conferences in Tokyo are conducted in Japanese or in English — or with English interpretation. Signs around the organizing committee offices are in Japanese and English. Printed material ...
'World class' Tokyo Aquatics Centre and Ariake Arena unveiled ahead of 2020 Olympics
Organizers for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games unveiled the inside of two major venues to the media Thursday as they near completion, touting them as world-class facilities. Four out of six permanent venues for the games have been completed. The Tokyo Aquatics Centre, located ...
JOC's Tsuyoshi Fukui to lead Japanese delegation at Tokyo 2020
Japanese Olympic Committee Secretary General Tsuyoshi Fukui has been tipped to take on the role of the Japanese delegation head for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, sources familiar with the matter said late Wednesday evening. According to sources, Mitsugi Ogata, head of training with the JOC, ...
