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Sumo: Terunofuji takes his place as yokozuna in latest rankings

Aug 31, 2021 (Kyodo) - Mongolian Terunofuji found himself among the ranks of sumo's historic elite as the ancient sport's 73rd yokozuna on Monday when the Japan Sumo Association rankings for September's Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament were published.

The 29-year-old's remarkable journey will enter its newest phase on Sept. 12, when the 15-day grand tournament gets under way at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan. Terunofuji will become the sport's sixth oldest "new" yokozuna, and just the second to ascend to the rank after having once been demoted from the second-highest rank of ozeki.

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Large Typhoon No. 25 was moving northwest over waters south of Japan at 3 p.m. on September 19 and is forecast to strengthen as it approaches Kanto and the Izu Islands from September 20 through September 21, bringing the risk of torrential rain, violent winds and further damage in areas still recovering from last year's typhoon.

A black bear has been spotted near one of the most popular hiking trails on Mount Takao in western Tokyo, prompting authorities to urge visitors to take precautions ahead of the five-day Silver Week holiday and the approaching autumn foliage season.

Starbucks is considering selling a majority stake in its Japanese business, potentially valued at as much as $3 billion, or about 470 billion yen, as the U.S. coffee chain seeks to concentrate management resources on its struggling North American operations.

Japan's Halloween Jumbo Lottery went on sale nationwide on September 16, offering a combined top payout of 400 million yen for the first prize and its adjacent-number prizes.

A new top-tier "Supreme Class" offering fully private compartments above the level of Green Car service will debut on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen on October 1, with passengers able to experience the new seating at a demonstration booth at Shin-Osaka Station.

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Anonymous and fluid criminal groups known in Japan as "tokuryu" are adopting increasingly elaborate tactics, including a scheme in which elderly victims are persuaded to hide cash inside refrigerators before thieves enter their homes, as authorities struggle to combat networks whose members often have no direct contact with one another.

A luxury mansion in Bangkok described as resembling a palace was being used as a base for a specialized fraud operation targeting Japanese people, with Thai authorities detaining 14 people, including four Japanese men.

Copper roofing has been stripped from Shinano-no-miya Shrine in Oshika Village, Nagano Prefecture, leaving the wooden structure exposed in the latest of a series of similar thefts reported at shrines across the prefecture.

A popular Tokyo nightclub hostess and influencer known as Yamatorino, who says she generated more than 200 million yen in sales during a single month, has been arrested on suspicion of possessing cocaine with her boyfriend at their home in Roppongi.

A second-year high school student was arrested at the scene after allegedly releasing tear gas spray inside a classroom at Osaka University of Commerce Sakai High School on September 16, leaving 24 students complaining of coughing, throat pain and other symptoms.

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A 37-year-old man was arrested at Chubu Centrair International Airport after allegedly injuring a police officer who warned him about walking two toy poodles without leashes inside the airport complex.

The number of people aged 100 or older in Japan has exceeded 100,000 for the first time, reaching a record 107,677 as of September 1, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.