Tennis: Davenport to miss Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo
January 26, 2006World No. 1 Lindsay Davenport has decided to sit out the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo starting Tuesday through Feb. 5 because of a left ankle injury, organizers said Thursday. Davenport has won a record four titles at the top-tier WTA tournament, tied with Martina Hingis, who recently showed an impressive comeback at the Australian Open after three years of retirement, making it to the quarterfinals.
Soccer: Ono ready for challenge with former team
January 26, 2006Japan midfielder Shinji Ono, who has returned to J-League first division club Urawa Reds after leaving Dutch club Feyenoord, formally signed Thursday. ''Part of me is sad that I won't be playing overseas anymore, but I also want to take this to heart as a new challenge for me to take a step forward,'' said Ono, who put pen to paper at a press conference joined by Urawa president Motoaki Inukai and about 150 reporters.
Brazilian spies analyze weak points of Japan's national soccer team
January 26, 2006The Brazilian daily with the largest circulation has assembled a team of analysts to evaluate the weak points of Japan's national soccer team. The Folha de Sao Paulo has gathered eight personalities, who have a ''connection with Japanese soccer'' to produce a full-page detailed analysis of the Blue Boys.