Latest news with #Saitama
Japan Times
12 hours ago
- Climate
- Japan Times
Baseball teams trying to fight off Japan's torrid summer heat
Japanese professional baseball teams are working on ways to protect their players and fans from the country's sweltering summer heat. On June 27, Tatsuya Imai, an ace pitcher for the Saitama Seibu Lions in the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization's Pacific League, was replaced after suffering heatstroke while pitching at a game held at the team's Belluna Dome stadium in the city of Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. The stadium, which has a roof but no outer walls, lacks an air-conditioning system that covers all corners of the facility. "We are taking the heat seriously as a challenge," an official said. Starting this month, large mist sprayers have been installed near spectator seats. For players, new commercial freezers equipped with ice packs have been set up under the dugout. The Hiroshima Toyo Carp, based in the western city of Hiroshima, are taking measures to cope with the heat during pregame practice sessions. To reduce players' exposure to the sweltering heat, the Central League team organizes batting practices for its reserve players early in the day and holds the batting portion of its full-team practice indoors. Team coach Akihito Fujii said, "We are trying to avoid players being overexposed to the sun." Many professional baseball teams, including the Carp and the Hanshin Tigers, another Central League team, have started to allow players to wear shorts during training. Most Tigers players have adopted shorts as part of their training gear this month, with Teruaki Sato saying, "I feel more comfortable." Many teams are also working on heat acclimation efforts. This season, the Yokohama DeNA BayStars held its batting practices outside for a week around June to help its players get used to the heat. A team trainer said, "We hope that players will be able to enhance their performance even in hotter weather." Some players of the Chunichi Dragons, based at Vantelin Dome Nagoya in the central city of Nagoya, have conducted running training outside to prepare for games played as the visiting team in open-air stadiums. Pitcher Takahiro Matsuba holds practice sessions about twice a week at an outdoor stadium. Players are also taking their own precautionary measures, with Jon Duplantier of the Tigers eating umeboshi pickled plums to replenish sodium.
Japan Times
a day ago
- Japan Times
Son of executed Aum Shinrikyo founder identified as Aleph leader
The Public Security Intelligence Agency (PSIA) has identified the second son of Shoko Asahara — the founder of the now-defunct Aum Shinrikyo cult — as the de facto head of Aleph, the group regarded as Aum's successor, it announced Tuesday. The unnamed 31-year-old son of Chizuo Matsumoto, who was commonly known as Shoko Asahara, has been 'involved in organizational decision-making and is leading Aleph's operations,' the PSIA said in a statement. The agency has made moves to tighten restrictions on the group's activities. Matsumoto, who was executed in 2018, was the mastermind behind a series of deadly crimes carried out by Aum Shinrikyo, including the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system that killed 14 people and injured thousands. The agency also filed a request with the Public Security Examination Commission to extend for another six months the current restrictions on Aleph, including the prohibition of facility use, as a preventive measure under the law governing organizations responsible for indiscriminate mass murder, citing the group's failure to comply with its reporting obligations. As part of the request, authorities moved to prohibit the use of the group's 16 facilities nationwide and designated the residence of the second son and his 66-year-old mother — Matsumoto's widow — in the city of Koshigaya, Saitama Prefecture, as a new Aleph site, dubbed the 'Shin-Koshigaya Facility.' The agency is seeking to force the pair to disclose the property's purpose and activities. The PSIA formally identified the mother as an Aleph member acting in a supervisory capacity to assist her son. This marks the first time the second son has been officially designated a member of the organization. Authorities are increasingly wary of his growing influence. According to the agency and related sources, Matsumoto designated his second son as one of his successors while still alive. Since around 2014, the son has reportedly been involved in Aleph's decision-making processes and ritual ceremonies. By around 2017, he had begun referring to himself as a 'second-generation guru.' On March 26, PSIA officials attempted to conduct an on-site inspection of the residence, but were denied entry. The Saitama Prefectural Police, acting on a criminal complaint from the agency, subsequently raided the home and discovered several tens of million yen in cash. Authorities are investigating the origin of the funds and suspect Aleph may have been providing financial support to the household. As of the end of April, Aleph had at least 1,190 followers, according to the PSIA. The group has seen a slowdown in recruitment efforts in recent years, attributed to increased restrictions on the use of its facilities and the departure of key senior members. Translated by The Japan Times
NHK
a day ago
- Health
- NHK
Whooping cough cases in Japan hit new high for 4th straight week
Weekly cases of whooping cough in Japan have hit a new high for the fourth straight week. The Japan Institute for Health Security says medical institutions across the country reported 3,682 patients in the week through July 13. That was 104 more than in the previous week and the highest since the current method of recordkeeping began in 2018. By prefecture, Tokyo had the most, with 273 patients. It was followed by 236 in Saitama, 198 in Gunma, 175 in Kanagawa, 169 in Niigata, 167 in Ibaraki, 153 in Chiba and 152 in Hyogo. The cumulative number of patients so far this year stands at 48,073. Whooping cough is a bacterial infection that affects mainly children and is characterized by severe persistent coughing. Infants can become seriously ill or die if infected. As of the end of June, at least four infants up to the age of four months have died in Tokyo and three other prefectures. Medical institutions in many regions have been reporting infections that are resistant to drugs. The Japan Pediatric Society is calling on parents to vaccinate their babies as soon as they are two months old.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Fortnite leak reveals potential One Punch Man collaboration
Image via Madman Entertainment. With the arrival of Chapter 6 Season 3 dubbed 'Super' in Fortnite, the game has already brought a lot of superhero elements, as this is the actual theme of the current season. Recently we saw Fortnite collaborating with Superman, on the occasion of the latest movie by James Gunn. Now following the footsteps of the Superhero theme of this season, Fortnite is yet again potentially going to collaborate with another superhero, but this time, from the Anime universe. No price for guessing, it could be our very own Saitama from One Punch Man. Fortnite X One Punch Man collaboration new details gets leaked The Fortnite X One Punch Man collaboration has been the talk of the town for some time now, and now a brand new leak has stirred the speculation about the potential collaboration even more. This exciting news comes from popular Fortnite leaker @Loolo_WRLD. This leaker has shared additional details about the upcoming collaboration where it has been claimed that Saitama will have 2 emotes in the game. The leaker also went into details about these emotes, as one of them will have the iconic Saitama 'OK' speech. Although, detail about the other one is still unknown. He also stated that there will be a Pickaxe as well, thanks to this upcoming collaboration. However, the disappointing part of this leak is that One Punch Man cosmetics aren't a part of the encrypted in-game files in the game of the recent v36.20 patch update. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Providers are furious: Internet access without a subscription! Techno Mag Learn More Undo That means it's highly unlikely fans will get a Saitama outfit in the upcoming collaboration. But a collaboration without its themed outfit of its central character sounds quite strange, so the outfit can be added anytime in the coming updates. Although, the in-game files of the recent update did contain the outfits of 3 of the 4 members of Fantastic Four. This suggests that after a successful DC collaboration, Fortnite is now gearing up for an ambitious MCU collaboration on the occasion of the highly anticipated movie, Fantastic Four: First Steps, which is going to be released on July 25, 2025 in theatres. Read More: How can PlayStation Plus Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
Japan Times
16-07-2025
- Japan Times
Tens of millions of yen found at home of Aum Shinrikyo founder's wife
Police in Saitama Prefecture have found tens of millions of yen in cash at the home of the wife of the now-defunct Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult's founder Chizuo Matsumoto, who went by the name Shoko Asahara, informed sources said Tuesday. The cash was found when the Saitama Prefectural Police searched the apartment of Matsumoto's 66-year-old wife and 31-year-old second son, the sources said. Matsumoto was executed in 2018 over a series of incidents involving the cult, including the 1995 sarin nerve gas attack on Tokyo's subway system.
