Rank-and-filer Ichinojo won his first title on Sunday at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament with 12 wins and three losses.

Ichinojo and Yokozuna Grand Champion Terunofuji were tied with 11 wins before the final day.

At the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, wrestlers won by default in more than 17 percent of the matches on Wednesday as a large number of wrestlers have pulled out due to coronavirus infection.

The Japan Sumo Association says 143 matches were arranged for the 11th day of the tournament, but 25 wrestlers won without facing their opponent.

Japanese figure skating star Hanyu Yuzuru has announced he will retire from competition and become a professional skater. He won back-to-back gold medals at the Sochi and PyeongChang Olympics.

Japanese two-way star Ohtani Shohei of the Los Angeles Angels has expressed hope of playing on Team Japan in next year's World Baseball Classic.

Ohtani spoke to reporters on Monday, the day before the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

A group of amateur Ukrainian sumo wrestlers has visited a city with a passion for sumo north of Tokyo before leaving for an international sports event in the United States.

The eight-member delegation had been training in Ehime Prefecture and elsewhere in Japan since June in the run-up to their participation in the 2022 World Games.

Japanese professional boxing sensation Inoue Naoya says he hopes to finish his career at age 35 undefeated.

The 29-year-old unified bantamweight world champion made the remark on Monday at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo.

Japanese boxing sensation Inoue Naoya has won a third world boxing championship with a second-round victory over the Philippine's Nonito Donaire. The defeat of defending WBC champion Donaire adds that belt to Inoue's WBA and IBF championships.

The two champions squared off Tuesday near Tokyo after clashing in 2019 at the same venue, a contest Inoue won by a decision.

A panel of experts convened by the government's Sports Agency has presented proposals on transferring responsibility for some extracurricular activities in which Japan's junior high school students take part away from teachers.

The panel handed its proposals to agency Commissioner Murofushi Koji on Monday. They were tasked with suggesting ways in which members of local communities could take charge of such activities on weekends and holidays.

Japanese wheelchair tennis players advanced to the finals of both men's and women's singles of the French Open on Saturday.

In the men's singles, Kunieda Shingo, the world number two, took on third-ranked Argentinian Gustavo Fernandez.

The Summer Grand Sumo Tournament kicked off on Sunday at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo.

Yokozuna Grand Champion Terunofuji returned to the ring after he pulled out of the previous tournament due to injuries. Komusubi Daieisho defeated Terunofuji with a frontal push out.

The governing body of Japanese professional baseball plans to conduct a survey of all 12 clubs after some players complained of likely aftereffects of COVID-19.

There have been a number of cases in which players or team officials have been infected with the coronavirus. Some games were canceled this month after cases were confirmed in the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and the Orix Buffaloes.

In sumo, newly promoted Sekiwake Wakatakakage has clinched his first championship after winning a playoff in the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament.

The wrestler, who holds the sport's third-highest rank, faced rank-and-filer Takayasu in the playoff after they both lost their bouts on the final day on Sunday and were tied with 12 wins and three losses.

Japanese ski jumper Takanashi Sara has clinched her third women's World Cup title of the season in Norway.

The women's individual Large Hill competition took place in Oslo on Sunday.

Japan's Olympic team has returned from the Beijing Games. It arrived at Narita Airport outside Tokyo on Monday night.

The women's curling team, which won the silver medal, was among them.