Panasonic Corp
FILE - Staff members rehearse a victory ceremony at the Beijing Medals Plaza of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, China on Jan. 3, 2022. The Beijing Winter Olympics are fraught with potential hazards for major sponsors, who are trying to remain quiet about China's human rights record while protecting at least $1 billion they've paid to the IOC. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)
IOC major sponsors mostly muted in runup to Beijing Olympics

By Stephen Wade Jan. 11, 2022 12:11 AM EST

FILE - The logos for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics are seen during an exhibit at a visitors center at the Winter Olympic venues in Yanqing on the outskirts of Beijing, Feb. 5, 2021. Leading sponsors of the Beijing Winter Olympics should explain publicly why they remain silent about alleged human rights abuses in China with the Games opening there in just under three months, Human Rights Watch said Friday, Nov. 12, 2021 in a statement. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
Sponsors asked to defend support for Beijing Winter Olympics

By Stephen Wade Nov. 11, 2021 08:44 PM EST

FILE - In this July 23, 2021, file photo, Yui Susaki and Rui Hachimura, front right, of Japan, carry their country's flag during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. The racial diversity Japan showcased at the Olympic opening ceremony also highlights its lack in Japanese society. (Hannah McKay/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Olympics carry a question: What does it mean to be Japanese?

By Mari Yamaguchi Aug. 04, 2021 04:42 AM EDT

A man wearing a protective mask passes by an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 and other Asian indexes at a securities firm Friday, June 25, 2021, in Tokyo. Asian shares are rising, buoyed by the rally on Wall Street that came after President Joe Biden announced a bipartisan deal on infrastructure spending. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Asian stocks rise after US rally on infrastructure deal

Yuri Kageyama Jun. 25, 2021 01:58 AM EDT

Cornelsen: A famous Wallaby name set to turn out for Japan

By Steve Mcmorran Jun. 23, 2021 04:03 AM EDT
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Jack Cornelsen is heir to a major piece of Australian rugby history. He bears a famous name that for Wallaby fans evokes pride...

Covid 19 Vaccine Minister Taro Kono, center, and Masayoshi Son, chief executive of technology company SoftBank Group Corp., left, speak to media after visiting an inoculation site set up by Japanese technology company SoftBank Group Corp. at a WeWork office Tuesday, June 15, 2021, in Tokyo. Japanese companies have joined the effort to speed up the country’s lagging coronavirus vaccine rollout before the Tokyo Olympics begin next month. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)
Vaccine laggard Japan steps up shots with company efforts

By Yuri Kageyama Jun. 15, 2021 07:31 AM EDT

People sit and wait after receiving the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine to be sure of no side effects in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, May 31, 2021. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thailand reports record virus cases; delays Bangkok easing

By Chalida Ekvittayavechnukul And Patrick Quinn May. 31, 2021 04:42 AM EDT

Wild Knights beat Sungoliath 31-26 in Top League final

May. 23, 2021 04:44 AM EDT
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Former Wallabies coach Robbie Deans guided the Panasonic Wild Knights to a 31-26 win over perpetual rivals Suntory Sungoliath...

FILE - In this Saturday, March 23, 2019 file photo, Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu and Nathan Chen from the United States display their silver and gold medals respectively during the men's free skating routine during the ISU World Figure Skating Championships at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, north of Tokyo. As Nathan Chen seeks a third straight World Figure Skating Championships title, something no American has achieved since Scott Hamilton got his fourth in a row in 1984, he has two major challenges in front of him. One is two-time Olympic gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan, who Chen calls “the benchmark." The other is idleness in major competitions forced by the coronavirus pandemic. ((AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)
Chen has 2 major challenges as he seeks 3rd straight worlds

By Barry Wilner Mar. 22, 2021 12:01 PM EDT

Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee President Seiko Hashimoto speaks to media after a video conference with the IOC executive board on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021, in Tokyo. Hashimoto, a former Olympics minister and seven time Olympian, was recently appointed the Tokyo 2020 president after her predecessor Yoshiro Mori quit following a backlash over sexist comments he made at an earlier meeting. (Takashi Aoyama/Pool Photo via AP)
Tokyo Olympic torch relay plans to kick off in one month

By Stephen Wade Feb. 24, 2021 09:35 PM EST

Vehicles move past the new completed National Speed Skating Oval near the Olympics park in Beijing Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021. The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will open a year from now. Most of the venues have been completed as the Chinese capital becomes the first city to hold both the Winter and Summer Olympics. Beijing held the 2008 Summer Olympics. But these Olympics are presenting some major problems. They are already scarred by accusations of rights abuses including "genocide"against more than 1 million Uighurs and other Muslim ethnic groups in western China. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Human rights, COVID at issue 1 year before Beijing Olympics

By Stephen Wade Feb. 04, 2021 01:20 AM EST

FILE - In this Oct. 27, 2020, file photo, workers wearing full protection gear amid the new coronavirus pandemic, lower a coffin into a grave in an area of the San Rafael municipal cemetery set apart for people who have died from COVID-19, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. The global death toll from COVID-19 has topped 2 million. (AP Photo/Christian Chavez, File)
The Latest: Sri Lanka reopens tourism after 10-month closing

By The Associated Press Jan. 20, 2021 07:11 AM EST

The headquarters of Japanese advertising company Dentsu Inc. is seen in Tokyo on June 5, 2020. Domestic sponsors have already contributed a record of $3.3 billion to help pay for the Tokyo Olympics. That's at least twice as much as any previous Games. Now they're being asked to pay millions more to cover some of the soaring costs of the one-year postponement. Dentsu helped land the Olympics, lined up the sponsors, and stands to profit with the Olympics opening on July 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Tokyo Games sponsors pay $3.3 billion, but more still needed

By Yuri Kageyama And Stephen Wade Dec. 11, 2020 01:02 AM EST

FILE- In this June 15, 2018, file photo, Will Zalatoris plays his shot from the 14th tee during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament in Southampton, N.Y. Zalatoris will have a PGA Tour card, the goal he set for himself at the start of the year. Still to be determined is when that happens. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
Zalatoris getting a PGA Tour card a question of when and how

By Doug Ferguson Sep. 29, 2020 05:53 PM EDT

Renown, Tesla, Panasonic top county list of virus job sites

By Scott Sonner And Sam Metz Sep. 28, 2020 06:18 PM EDT
RENO, Nev. (AP) — The Tesla battery factory where Tesla and Panasonic employees work east of Reno, and Renown Regional Medical Center are the job sites where...

Attendees wear masks to curb the spread of the new coronavirus before the ceremony to mark the listing of JD.com on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange at the JD.com headquarters in Beijing on Thursday, June 18, 2020. Chinese e-commerce firm JD.com's stock jumped nearly 6% on its debut in Hong Kong on Thursday after the firm raised $3.9 billion in a share sale. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
JD.com racks up $38B in sales in annual online shopping fest

By Zen Soo Jun. 18, 2020 03:16 AM EDT