Overview
- Mao Shimada won the women’s title at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Estonia, becoming the first skater to claim four consecutive junior world crowns.
- Rito Nakata defended his men’s junior world title with a personal‑best 268.47 points, the first back‑to‑back champion by a Japanese man, as he prepares to step up to seniors next season.
- Japan progressed from WBC pool play to the United States quarterfinals after topping its group, sealing the berth with a power‑hitting display highlighted by multiple home runs.
- Sheila Chepkirui retained her Nagoya Women’s Marathon crown in 2:21:54, with Sayaka Sato the top Japanese finisher in second at 2:21:56.
- A Shogakukan board director apologized by phone on March 5 to a woman reporting sexual abuse tied to a manga creator and pledged recurrence‑prevention measures, according to her March 8 statement via counsel.