A tropical storm is forecast to hit Tokyo on the last day of the Olympic Games, organisers said on Friday, but did not announce any changes in the schedule.
Japan's weather agency predicted strong winds, high waves and the risk of landslides and floods along the eastern coast from Saturday afternoon to Sunday, when Tropical Storm Mirinae is expected to pass over the capital.
The Olympics' closing ceremony is on Sunday evening, with medal events including water polo and rhythmic gymnastics taking place at indoor venues in the city during the day.
Cycling track races are also scheduled in Shizuoka, south-west of Tokyo, while the men's marathon will kick off early on Sunday in the far northern city of Sapporo.
"We are firmly and calmly paying attention" to the path of the storm, Tokyo 2020 organising committee spokesman Masa Takaya said.
"It is necessary to inform you objectively, so that we can avoid excessive overreaction," he said.
A storm hit Japan last week, forcing Games organisers to reschedule some rowing and archery events, although they brought forward the surfing finals to take advantage of powerful waves.
On Friday, Mirinae was about 100 kilometres north of Minamidaito island, near the southern archipelago of Okinawa.
It was moving east, with gusts of up to 108 kilometres per hour.
Another tropical storm is hovering in the Taiwan Strait, moving towards Japan.
Japan's typhoon season runs from about May to October, peaking in August and September.
In 2019, Typhoon Hagibis smashed into Japan as it hosted the Rugby World Cup, killing more than 100 people.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 case numbers continue to rise in Japan, with the country deciding this week to expand Covid-19 curbs to more than 70 per cent of its population. In contrast to the stringent lockdowns in some countries, authorities are relying mainly on requests for self-restraint and peer pressure.
With nationwide new cases topping 15,000 a day for the first time this week, expectations are that Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga may declare a nationwide state of emergency, although he said on Thursday he was not considering this now.
Some ruling legislators suggested legal changes to allow stricter enforcement of curbs, but any move to a western-style lockdown would be controversial and take time.
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Tomb%20Raider%20I%E2%80%93III%20Remastered
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Arrogate's winning run
1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016
2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016
3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016
4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016
5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016
6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017
7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
'The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting up a Generation for Failure'
Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, Penguin Randomhouse
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
