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April 13, 2026
 

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Mai Yoshikawa
Everett Hopkin, second from left, marches on the field with his Yamauchi Spirits teammates before a competition.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Apr 3, 2026
Unifying power of Japanese baseball brings together people from all walks of life
In Japanese baseball, everyone belongs.
Tomoko Namba, founder and executive chair of DeNA, speaks during an interview at the company's headquarters in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward in January.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 22, 2026
The Yokohama DeNA BayStars¡¯ No. 1 fan also happens to be the owner
Tomoko Namba, the only female owner of an NPB team and affectionately known as "Namba Mama" to BayStars fans, has had a lifelong love affair with baseball.
Koto Kawaguchi, a Deaflympics medalist who works in auto parts logistics in Aichi Prefecture, recently made his acting debut in the Hollywood film ¡°Marty Supreme.¡±
CULTURE / Film / Longform
Mar 12, 2026
The unlikely Hollywood story of Deaflympics champion Koto Kawaguchi
The table tennis medalist discusses his unlikely turn in the Oscar-nominated 'Marty Supreme' and returning to life in Aichi Prefecture.
Ohtani on the field at Hanamaki Higashi High School on Sept. 18, 2012, the day he signed his application to turn pro.
BASEBALL
Mar 10, 2026
How one of 91²Ö¿â deadliest disasters shaped Shohei Ohtani's life
A global baseball icon opens up about his upbringing in Iwate and how a cataclysmic disaster shaped both his youth and future.
The Mt. Fuji International Marathon gave Dennis Lui a perfect opportunity to finally visit Japan in 2024.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Feb 27, 2026
Why foreign runners are flocking to Japan¡¯s top marathons
A look at the major marathon races coming to Japan from March onward.
Viewers in Japan are temporarily adjusting their schedules to watch athletes like Kaori Sakamoto during the Milano Cortina Games despite an eight-hour time difference.
OLYMPICS
Feb 16, 2026
Why we love the Olympics ¡ª even if we¡¯re not sports fans
Even in Japan ¡ª where baseball, soccer and sumo command loyal followings ¡ª the Games pull in everyone: the casually interested, the indifferent, even the self-declared non-fan.
Freestyle skier Kokone Kondo skis during a training session in Livigno, Italy, on Feb. 4.
OLYMPICS
Feb 13, 2026
Japanese skier hits back at trolls and brings attention to online abuse at Olympics
For Kokone Kondo, cyber bullying has only deepened the heartbreak of being unable to compete in back-to-back Winter Games due to injury.
Among the 120 athletes representing Japan at the Milano Cortina Games are competitors raised in some of the country¡¯s snowiest landscapes, as well as others who grew up far from dependable winter conditions.
OLYMPICS
Feb 4, 2026
The regions driving Japan¡¯s Winter Olympic success
Some Japanese Olympians were raised in the country¡¯s snowiest landscapes, while others grew up far from dependable winter conditions.
Fans hold Japanese flags during the men's figure skating short program at the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, on Feb. 16, 2018.
OLYMPICS
Feb 3, 2026
From across Europe, Japanese fans rally for the Winter Games
The Olympics feel closer and more personal than ever for some Japanese expats.
A test shot of Shizuka Minami taken by herself
SPORTS / Golf
Jan 13, 2026
In sports photography, a Japanese woman finds her own angle
Sports and festivals may seem like an unlikely pairing, but to Shizuka Minami, the combination makes perfect sense.
Members of the Chunichi Dragons pray at Atsuta Jingu in Nagoya ahead of the start of their season in March.
SPORTS
Jan 1, 2026
Gods and games: Rituals that kick off Japan¡¯s sporting year
From hatsum¨­de to victory charms, many athletes have rituals that are rooted in the spiritual side of Japanese sport.
Ayuri Shimano is a two-way player for the Giants' women's team.
BASEBALL
Dec 25, 2025
Girls inspired by Shohei Ohtani leading Japan¡¯s next wave of two-way players
Against the odds, players such as Ayuri Shimano and Aika Morimoto are forging a new path for women¡¯s baseball.
Shogi player Kana Fukuma speaks at a news conference about issues with Japan Shogi Association rules governing pregnant women, in Osaka on Dec. 10.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 19, 2025
In Japan, a shogi player opens a debate on motherhood and the 'game of generals'
Kana Fukuma says new rules governing female shogi players would have forced her to choose between her career and having a second child.
Sports fan Tadashi Yokoyama streams basketball and fencing on three screens.
SPORTS
Nov 13, 2025
Japan fully enters sports streaming era as fans face new dilemmas
Japan, where viewing habits have been slow to change, is now fully in the streaming era, though not everyone is ready to come along for the ride.
Japan Sumo Association Chairman Hakkaku (front center) delivers a speech on the first day of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament at the Fukuoka Kokusai Center on Sunday. Centuries of belief and tradition still underpin the all-male association's stance of excluding women.
SUMO
Nov 11, 2025
As Japan¡¯s female leader rises, can she cross sumo¡¯s sacred line?
Professional sumo¡¯s ring remains off-limits to women and girls ¡ª not by law, but by centuries of belief and tradition.
Judi Oyama at Winchester Skatepark in San Jose, California, in January 1979. The Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductee and Guinness World Record holder still skates and hopes to inspire older women.
SPORTS / Skateboarding
Nov 4, 2025
From 1973 to 2025: A Japanese American skater¡¯s long ride to recognition
At 66, Judi Oyama would be considered a senior citizen by Japan¡¯s official standards, but nothing about her life fits that description.
Team Japan performs during the group 5 Ribbons Final at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 24.
MORE SPORTS / Gymnastics
Oct 28, 2025
Tough love or too far? Inside Japan¡¯s rhythmic gymnastics coaching scandal
Reports of harsh tactics behind the scenes of Fairy Japan have prompted urgent questions about the boundaries of coaching and the price of winning in sports.
Yotaro Sato and Tomoka Sato perform during the artistic swimming mixed duet competition at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka on July 16, 2023.
MORE SPORTS / Swimming
Oct 3, 2025
Artistic swimming welcoming more men into pool ahead of LA Olympics
Yotaro Sato used to hide the fact that he¡¯s an artistic swimmer. Now, he¡¯s part of a growing number of men taking up a sport that was long exclusive to women.
Tomokazu Harimoto waits for China's Wang Chuqin to serve during the men's singles final at the WTT Champions Yokohama 2025 tournament on Aug. 11.
MORE SPORTS / Table tennis
Sep 26, 2025
Can Japan crack the China code in table tennis?
Japan has much more work to do if it is to be a proper rival for its neighbor.
Japan's Mebuki Suzuki in action with Uganda's Oscar Chelimo in the men's 10,000 meter final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on Sept. 14
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Sep 22, 2025
The Japanese face and body patches that have had the world wondering
Some athletes at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo swear by the products.
Japan team discovers why cats leave meals unfinished
An Iwate University team said it has confirmed that cats' appetites wane once they get used to the smell of their food.
Japanese researchers look at 800-year-old books and trees for signs of extreme solar events
A drawing of Fujiwara no Teika, known as a courtier, <i>waka</i> poet and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods
Debt-laden Japan should review spending on gender equality, survey finds
A woman holds a handheld fan bearing the image of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi&#039;s wedding photo, during an election campaign event in Tokyo on Feb. 7.
Jehovah's Witnesses followers sue Japanese government
Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses hand out pamphlets in the Bronx borough of New York City in 2023. In Japan around 20 members of the group have sued the government.
Chinese payment apps raise questions in Japan
Alipay has been mentioned by legislators in discussions about the use of foreign payment apps in Japan.
Tokyo¡¯s sake calendar is filled to the brim
The recently concluded Sake Park invited younger brewers to make sake more approachable for attendees in their 20s and 30s.
Japan¡¯s tighter immigration controls yielding results
An immigration control passport stamp issued in Japan. A surge in arrivals from overseas has coincided with a tightening of immigration controls under a government initiative aimed at reducing overstayers.
At 80, Yoshio Suzuki keeps chasing the possibilities of jazz
Members of jazz ensemble The Blend ¡ª (from left) pianist Hakuei Kim, trumpeter Keisuke Nakamura, bassist Yoshio Suzuki, drummer Tamaya Honda and saxophonist Kosuke Mine ¡ª performed at Billboard Live Yokohama last month to celebrate Suzuki¡¯s 80th birthday.
Sumo creates unity on an island famed for division
Jonathon Templeton (second from right) with members of Sumo na hEireann
Pokemon store stabbing spotlights importance of treatment for stalkers
Police investigate the scene where a staff member of a Pokemon store was fatally stabbed, in Tokyo&#039;s Toshima Ward on March 26.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples are testing the limits.
By Alex K.T. Martin

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