This week’s news roundup begins with a miraculous story as Pen-chan, a runaway penguin who had never been in the open ocean before, is found safe and sound two weeks after escaping. We also report on the LDP presidential election, plus the deaths of the divisive ex-Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori and the former TV announcer Mari Takahashi. In sport, Team Japan finishes the Paralympics with 41 medals. The men’s soccer team thrash Bahrain 5-0. And Shohei Ohtani hits his 47th home run of the season.
Runaway Penguin May Have Survived Because of the Typhoon
When Pen-chan escaped from an event on Aichi Prefecture’s Himaka Island on August 25, there was little hope for her survival. Swimming with staff at Gekidan Penters Zoo, she suddenly felt agitated and swam through a hole in the enclosure. The runaway penguin was born and raised in captivity and had no experience of the open ocean or predators. Her keeper, Ryosuke Imai, gathered a team to scour the area. However, the search was hampered by Typhoon Shanshan. The zoo wasn’t able to send out boats to look for the Cape penguin. Imai began losing hope.
“I couldn’t help but feel despair,” he told CNN. “The chances of her surviving in the wild were very low.” Surprisingly, though, it was actually Typhoon Shanshan that probably saved her. The heavy rainfall kept her hydrated and helped her cool down. Also, as fishing boats weren’t able to operate, there was less chance of her getting caught up in a net. “She survived because of the typhoon,” continued Imai. “It was almost miraculous timing.” On Sunday, he was informed that Pen-chan had been seen in the water at a beach 45 kilometers away. “It’s nothing short of a miracle,” he said.
LDP Leadership Race Kicks Off With a Record Nine Candidates
The race to become the new leader of Japan’s main governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) officially kicked off on Thursday. The winner will be named as Japan’s new prime minister, taking over from Fumio Kishida. There are nine candidates, a record high. In order to qualify, they all needed to secure nominations from at least 20 fellow LDP Diet members. The election takes place on September 27, with both LDP lawmakers and rank-and-file members casting votes. If nobody obtains an outright majority in the first round, a runoff between the top two contenders will be held.
The poster boy of the election is Shinjiro Koizumi. Shigeru Ishiba topped a Kyodo News opinion poll as the most suitable candidate. Taro Kono, the Minister for Digital Transformation, is the maverick of the group, while Sanae Takaichi is the most hawkish of the nine. Toshimitsu Motegi, has been described by Donald Trump as a “tough” negotiator. Takayuki Kobayashi, is popular with younger members of the party. And Yoko Kamikawa is seen as a dark horse. Yoshimasa Hayashi has long been touted as a future PM, while Katsunobu Kato is viewed as an outsider.
Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori Dies at 86
Alberto Fujimori, the controversial former Peruvian president of Japanese descent who ruled with an iron fist, died at the home of his daughter, Keiko, on Wednesday evening, 10 months after he was granted a humanitarian pardon. He was 86. “After a long battle with cancer, our father, Alberto Fujimori, has just departed to meet the Lord,” posted Keiko on X. “We ask those who loved him to accompany us with a prayer for the eternal rest of his soul. Thank you so much, dad.” She added the names of his three other children; Hiro, Sachie and Kenji.
Fujimori ruled Peru between 1990 and 2000, proving to be one of the most divisive figures in the country’s history. During his time in office, he was credited with helping Peru come back from the brink of economic collapse. He also defeated the Maoist Shining Path movement, a brutal terrorist organization. Although he was seen as a hero to his supporters, many viewed him as a corrupt tyrant who was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people. In 2009, he was handed a 25-year sentence for corruption and human rights violations. He was released last December.
Former TV Announcer and Political Candidate Mari Takahashi Dies in Suspected Suicide
On Monday it was announced that former TV announcer and political candidate Mari Takahashi sadly passed away last week. She was 27. A graduate of Keio University’s Department of Human Sciences, Takahashi also worked as an IT consultant and was a Miss Japan finalist. She was found lying in front of the grounds of her apartment in Chiyoda ward, Tokyo, on September 4. After being rushed to the hospital, she was soon pronounced dead. No cause of death has been announced, but due to the circumstances at the scene, it’s thought she took her own life.
Takahashi had been scheduled to run in April’s House of Representatives by-election as a member of the Democratic Party For the People. However, two months prior, she withdrew. It was claimed that she’d previously worked at a hostess club while receiving social welfare. Takahashi, though, strongly denied this allegation, stating that she received welfare after her father’s company went bankrupt, but not while she was working as a hostess. In a tearful Instagram video that was also posted on X, Takahashi said she was told to withdraw from the race and to cite “ill health” as the reason.
Golds for Oda and Kamiji As Japan Finishes the Paralympics with 41 Medals
Japan finished the Paris Paralympics with 41 medals, 11 shy of the country’s previous best of 52 at the 2004 Athens Games. After a relatively slow start, it was a strong finish for the Japanese team, who won six golds in the last three days. One of them came from the nation’s most famous Paralympian Tokito Oda in men’s wheelchair tennis. He defeated Great Britain’s Alfie Hewett 6-2 4-6 7-5 in a thrilling final at Roland Garros on Saturday. Losing 5-3 in the final set, Oda survived a match point before going on to win the last four games.
A day earlier, Yui Kamiji topped the podium in women’s wheelchair tennis. She defeated defending champion Diede de Groot of the Netherlands 4-6 6-3 6-4 to claim her second gold of the Games. Keiko Sugiura, 53, extended her record as Japan’s oldest gold medalist at the Paralympics. She defended her title in the road race in France on Saturday. One day prior, Keiichi Kimura topped the podium for the second time in Paris. He won the men’s S11 100-meter butterfly. Yujiro Seto and Junko Hirose also won judo golds. Japan ended the Paralympics 10th in the medal table.
HAJIME MORIYASU | IMAGE BY FEELPHOTO/SHUTTERSTOCK
Moriyasu’s Japan Side Thump Bahrain 5-0
In men’s soccer, Japan followed up their 7-0 hammering of China with a 5-0 thumping of Bahrain. Feyenoord’s Ayase Ueda and Sporting’s Hidemasa Morita both bagged braces for the away side. NEC Nijmegen’s Koki Ogawa completed the rout in the 81st minute after coming off the bench. Hajime Moriyasu’s side sit top of their World Cup qualifying group with maximum points from the opening two games. Next up is second-placed Saudi Arabia, who defeated China 2-1 despite going down to 10 men. In the group’s other game, Indonesia held Australia to a 0-0 draw.
In other sports news, Shohei Ohtani’s pursuit of an unprecedented 50-50 season shows no sign of slowing down. He hit his 45th home run of the season against the Cleveland Guardians last Friday and his 46th of the campaign against the same opposition two days later. On Monday, he recorded his 47th stolen base in the Dodgers’ 10-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs. Last night, also against the Cubs, he went long for his 47th home run — a new career high — and recorded his 48th steal in a 10-8 win for the Dodgers.
