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April 04, 2025
 

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Andrew MCKIRDY

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Andrew MCKIRDY
Andrew McKirdy is a sports writer for The Japan Times. His main beat is soccer, but he has also covered rugby, tennis, volleyball, golf and even tug-of-war. A native of the Scottish Borders, he has written for The Scotsman newspaper and organized filming for a program on Japanese soccer for ITV television.
SOCCER / J. League
May 29, 2016
Frontale escape with home victory after Iwata's 88th-minute own goal
Kawasaki Frontale stayed top of the J. League table after an 88th-minute own goal by defender Daiki Ogawa handed them a 1-0 win over Jubilo Iwata on Sunday.
JAPAN
May 26, 2016
IOC execs stand with scandal-hit Tokyo 2020 organizers
International Olympic Committee executives put on a show of solidarity after arriving in Japan to check on preparations.
SOCCER / J. League
May 21, 2016
Wako header gives Reysol triumph over Avispa
Naoki Wako scored an 86th-minute header to give Kashiwa Reysol a roller-coaster 3-2 win over Avispa Fukuoka on Saturday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
May 17, 2016
Kanagawa woman, 26, taps crowdfunding to raise money for her spouse search
From tech products to movies, the recent advent of crowdfunding has allowed companies and creators to make their dreams a reality.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
May 11, 2016
Gamba, Tokyo running out of time to get going in J. League
Fortunes can change quickly in the J. League, but the division's misfiring big guns will have to start finding their range soon if they want to make a mark this season.
BASKETBALL
May 10, 2016
Australia women's squad completes three-game sweep of Japan
The Japan women's basketball team gave world No. 2 Australia a huge fright before succumbing to an 84-73 loss to suffer a series sweep on Tuesday.
MORE SPORTS
May 8, 2016
Gatlin keeps focus on Bolt after triumph in Kawasaki
Justin Gatlin geared up his bid to unseat sprint king Usain Bolt at this summer's Rio Olympics with a time of 10.02 seconds to win the 100 meters at the Golden Grand Prix on Sunday.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 7, 2016
Western Force whip Sunwolves
The Sunwolves came crashing back to earth two weeks after their first Super Rugby victory with a 40-22 loss to Australia's Western Force on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League
May 7, 2016
Endo aiming for medal in Rio
Urawa Reds defender Wataru Endo is expecting a feisty atmosphere in his first Saitama derby against Omiya Ardija on Sunday.
SOCCER / J. League
Apr 30, 2016
Antlers fall further back in pursuit of first-stage title
Kashima Antlers lost further ground in the race for the J. League first-stage title after a 0-0 draw with Omiya Ardija on Saturday.
JAPAN
Apr 25, 2016
Checkered pattern by artist Tokolo chosen as logo for 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Tokyo 2020 Olympics organizers pick a stark indigo-and-white checkered circle as the games' replacement emblem after the original design was scrapped last year amid claims of plagiarism.
SOCCER / J. League
Apr 24, 2016
Urawa moves into first place after knocking Kawasaki off J. League perch
Urawa Reds ended Kawasaki Frontale's unbeaten start to the J. League season and replaced them at the top of the table with a 1-0 win on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 15, 2016
Hagino ready to meet Olympic challenge head-on
Japan's Olympic poster boy Kosuke Hagino insists he can handle the pressure of the nation's expectations as he bids for swimming glory at this summer's Rio Games.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 14, 2016
Kaneto, Ikee offer stark contrasts in pursuit of Rio glory
Comeback queen Rie Kaneto is gearing up for an assault on the 200-meter breaststroke world record at this summer's Rio Olympics, but admits she could just as easily have been watching the race on TV instead.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Apr 13, 2016
Early J. League pace-setters lay down title credentials
The J. League season is only six games old, but already the early front-runners have hinted at their championship potential with a series of convincing performances.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 9, 2016
Hagino shatters own 200 IM national mark, secures spot in fourth Rio event
Kosuke Hagino rewrote his own 200-meter individual medley national record Saturday to claim a fourth berth at this summer's Rio Olympics and round off a dominant week at the national championships.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 8, 2016
Japan unveils final four candidates for Tokyo 2020 Olympics logo
Tokyo 2020 Olympics organizers on Friday unveiled a shortlist of four replacement logos after the original design was scrapped last September amid accusations of plagiarism.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 4, 2016
2020 Tokyo Olympics CEO weighs in on security, differences with Rio
The CEO of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics says security is his greatest concern but believes Japan will be safe from the kind of mass street protests currently overshadowing this summer's Rio de Janeiro Games.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Mar 30, 2016
Centurion Okazaki looking for balance after win over Syria
National team striker Shinji Okazaki thanked his teammates for helping him reach 100 caps but warned the hard work is still to come after Japan topped its 2018 World Cup second-round qualifying group with a 5-0 win over Syria on Tuesday.
SOCCER
Mar 29, 2016
Japan clobbers Syria with late onslaught
Japan finished top of its 2018 World Cup second-round qualifying group without conceding a single goal after beating closest challenger Syria 5-0 on Tuesday night.
As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
Trump unveils 10% global tariff, with Japan levy set at 24%
Trump tosses a MAGA hat to the crowd during an event in which he unveiled new tariffs in the White House on Wednesday.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
Japan promises 'bold and speedy' response to Trump’s surprise 24% tariffs
U.S. President Donald Trump unveils new U.S. tariffs at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
A new human trafficking trend emerges from Myanmar scam centers
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar gather at a compound inside KK Park, a fraud center on the country's border with Thailand, after a multinational crackdown in February.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
On defense, Japan may avoid Trump's worst impulses — for now
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth chat after reviewing an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Sunday.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
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