スポーツ
日本でのWBC人気、米国の無関心と対照的【WBC popularity in Japan contrasted with US indifference】
The World Baseball Classic was hugely popular in Japan, but garnered little interest in the United States. TV director Dave Spector criticized the WBC’s limited global appeal. A player’s injury during the event sparked debates on its significance and timing in the country, with mixed opinions on its value.
カタールW杯は画期的ながら問題含み【Qatar World Cup both groundbreaking and controversial】
This World Cup is historic as the first in an Islamic country, in a different season than usual due to its sweltering climate, and FIFA says this will be the first carbon-neutral World Cup. However, Qatar 2022 is mired in controversy, including over treatment of migrant workers who built stadiums.
東京五輪の汚職で札幌招致打撃【Bribery arrests tarnish Japan’s Olympic image】
Executives of a budget business wear chain and a former Olympic Organizing Committee member were arrested for alleged bribery. The clothing company sponsored the 2020 Olympics and designed athletes’ outfits. The accusations are a setback for Japan’s relatively clean image and its ambitions to host the 2030 Winter Olympics.
レッドカード付きMVP【MVP with red card】復刻版
France captain Zinedine Zidane, whose name will forever be remembered with “The Head-butt”, was chosen the most valuable player of the 2006 World Cup after his team’s loss to Italy in Sunday’s final. During the last game of his career, Zidane was red-carded for slamming his head into an opponent’s chest.
IOCの要請でロシア選手を除外【Russian athletes banned from competing after IOC appeal】
After the International Olympic Committee called on international sports federations to keep Russia out of events in response to the invasion of Ukraine, Russian teams and athletes in most major sports were banned from competitions under their country’s name or flag. Belarus was also singled out due to its participation in the Ukraine conflict. The Russian Deputy Prime Minister asserted that sports and politics should be separate, but much of the world appears united behind this new addition to the growing list of sanctions.
日本のスポンサー企業、五輪中は控えめな態度【Japanese sponsors keep a low profile during Olympics】
Several Japanese companies are sponsoring the Beijing Winter Games, including three – Toyota Motors, Bridgestone, and Panasonic – that are top-level sponsors known as Worldwide Olympic Partners. However, while the companies are supplying goods to venues and athletes, they are refraining from running Olympic-themed ads due to condemnation of China’s human rights practices, particularly in the U.S. and Europe.
ジョコビッチが国外退去訴訟で勝訴、しかし全豪オープン出場は不透明【Djokovic wins on deportation but Australian Open participation uncertain】
Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic has been released from immigration detention in Australia, where he was held following the loss of his visa due to not being vaccinated against COVID-19. While the visa cancellation was overturned as legally invalid, whether he will play at the Australian Open remains up in the air, and the government may exercise powers that will keep him out of the country for three years.
中国のテニス大会が権力乱用の訴えで中止に【China tennis tournaments halted over abuse allegation】
The Women’s Tennis Association has suspended tournaments in China, after one of the country’s top female players accused a former high-ranking politician of forcing her into a sexual relationship and she subsequently disappeared from public view for several weeks. Many national tennis federations have expressed support for the decision.
