Tokyo Olympics

Lutalo Muhammad has called on World Taekwondo to push the IOC for a change to the sport’s Olympic competition format ahead of Paris 2024. The 29-year-old is a double Olympic medallist – having picked up bronze at London 2012 before falling to an agonising last-second defeat in the final in Rio four years later – but faces the very real prospect of missing out on a spot in Tokyo this summer. With every nation only allowed to qualify one athlete in each of four weight classes, Mahama Cho is arguably favourite for GB’s heavyweight selection having earned the quota place at the World Taekwondo Grand Slam in China in 2019. Muhammad is well-versed in the battle among the British camp having pipped then-world No 1 Aaron Cook in 2012 before usurping Damon Sansum for the Rio Games. But he believes the time has come for better representation across the board. “It’s something that needs changing, and as far as I’m aware that would mean World Taekwondo presenting it as a problem to the IOC,” said Muhammad, who is working with Purplebricks to encourage the nation to get behind Team GB on their journey to Tokyo. Read more Laura Kenny urges road teams to support women’s cycling “If we’re being honest me and Aaron could have gone to 2012, me and Damon could have gone to Rio in 2016, and me and Cho should both be going to Tokyo. “I’ve been fortunate to get the last two places, but there were other medals up for grabs and it’s a shame those guys didn’t get those opportunities. “Can you imagine other sports like athletics having the same policy, with only one Jamaican and one American sprinter being allowed per event? People don’t seem to care if those races are overpopulated by certain nations. “Taekwondo is unfortunately very much behind the curve, with only being able to select one athlete per country but also in the sense that we only compete in half of our weight divisions. “If all the weights were opened up I could feasibly go in at middleweight and Cho could go in at heavyweight - you can see how much controversy and angst could be avoided with a simple change to the system.” Walthamstow native Muhammad points to boxing as an example of a sport taekwondo could follow in making changes, to ensure the world’s best fighters get the chance to showcase their credentials on the greatest stage. “Women’s boxing was in the Olympics for the first time in 2012, with just a few of the weights. At the next Games - just four years later - they had all the weights,” said 2012 European middleweight champion Muhammad. “Taekwondo has been an Olympic sport since Sydney 2000, and we’re still where we were. I’d love to see it evolve - it’d mean more medals, more opportunities, and it’d be better all round for the sport.” Despite going toe-to-toe with Cho for a seat on the plane to Japan – with next month’s European Championships likely to play a big role in selection – Muhammad insists the duo have a good relationship away from the ring. Having enjoyed his first bout of competition for 15 months at March’s Ramus Sofia Open in Bulgaria, the 2019 French Open champion is keeping his eyes firmly fixed on completing his Olympic set with gold this summer. He said: “I get on really well with Cho. He’s a magnificent fighter, a masterful practitioner, and I know that if I do get the nod ahead of him I’ll be in a very good position to win the gold medal because he’s world class like me. “I’ve had to go up against world class fighters to get to the Olympics before, and it’s the same now in that I have to just train as if I’m going. I can’t think of any other eventuality, because if you entertain the idea you almost give in to it. “I’m feeling at my very best, and my confidence is at an all-time high at the moment. It was great to get back out into the ring in Bulgaria, and I’m ready to bring that performance out when the chips come down and the whole world is watching.” While change is afoot ahead of Tokyo 2020 with foreign fans unlikely to be allowed to travel, the magnitude of the occasion is not lost on Olympics veteran Muhammad, who believes the Games could go down in history as the most memorable ever. He added: “I think it’s important to be realistic and say that the Olympics are going to be very different this year. The fans are what make it what it is, and the overwhelming takeaway of my experience is the deafening noise. “But after the year everyone has had, I think it’s safe to say the whole world will be watching and it could go down as the greatest Games ever. It’d be amazing to be part of it, and topping the podium would just cap it off perfectly.” Lutalo Muhammad is working with Purplebricks to encourage the nation to get behind Team GB on their journey to Tokyo, with the same amazing home support as London 2012. Visit @PurplebricksUK. To enter the draw to receive one of 2,020 limited edition prints, visit https://page.purplebricks.co.uk/teamgb_homesupport/ Tokyo OlympicsOlympic GamesLondon OlympicsIocCombatIOCThe BronzeBritish AthleticsBoxingTeam GBRioJamaicanAmericanEuropeanRamus Sofia OpenLutalo MuhammadMahama ChoMuhammadDamon SansumLaura KennyAaron

PARIS — Julie Pomagalski, a former Olympic snowboarder from France, has died in an avalanche in the Swiss Alps. She was 40. Pomagalski competed in the parallel giant slalom at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics and the 2006 Turin Games. She won gold in the snowboard cross at the world championships in 1999.Read Full StoryOlympic GamesAvalancheOlympicsTurinFranceWorld ChampionshipsSwiss AlpsParisFrenchRegaTwitterOlympianOlympic SnowboarderPARISGoldJulie Pomagalski

World record-holder Kristof Milak recorded the fifth-fastest 200 fly in history when he thundered to 1:52.50 in the evening heats on day one of the Hungarian Nationals at the Duna Arena, Budapest. Boglarka Kapas also produced a stunning performance when she went 2:06.85 in the women’s equivalent. Link to results.Read Full StoryHungarianFlyMelbourneTokyoWorld ChampionshipsRecord TimeAustraliaMilak ThundersCovidKristof MilakWorld Record-holderBudapestKatinka HosszuPetra SenánszkyCsaba SzilágyiMichael PhelpsKatalin Burián

Julie Pomagalski, a snowboarding champion from France who competed in two Winter Olympics, has died. She was 40. Pomagalski died on Tuesday in an avalanche, according to a statement released by the French ski federation on Wednesday. The organization said that a guide, Bruno Cutelli, died in the avalanche as...Read Full StorySnowboardingAvalancheWinter OlympicsWorld ChampionOlympic SnowboarderFrenchThe Associated PressSwissGermanUri Cantonal HospitalRegaThe French Olympic TeamTwitterCNOSFFISJulie Pomagalski

Veteran Argentine tennis star Juan Martín del Potro has undergone yet another knee surgery to give himself the best chance of making an Olympics return. The 32-year-old Argentine has been out of action since the 2019 Queens event with a persistent knee problem. However, he has made no secret of...Read Full StoryTokyo OlympicsLondon OlympicsLaTennis Community OfferArgentineCroat Marin CilicSerbInstagramThe Rafa Nadal AcademyHopes Del PotroDr. Jorge ChahlaVeteranStarBronzeFitnessNovak DjokovicJuan Martín

TOKYO, Mar 22, 2021 – (JCN Newswire) – Eisai Co., Ltd. announced today that, as part of one strategic investment towards the realization of its medium-term business plan “EWAY2025”, it has conducted the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a new injection/research building “Eisai Medicine Innovation Technology Solutions” (“EMITS”) at the Kawashima Industrial Park located in Gifu Prefecture, Japan.Read Full StoryJapanDrugsIndustrial DevelopmentTechnology DevelopmentGlobal DevelopmentBusiness DevelopmentGMPKawashima Industrial ParkJCN NewswireFormulation ResearchFormulation ManufacturingManufacturing ControlTOKYOTechnologiesInvestmentEisai

TOKYO (Reuters) - Daiichi Sankyo Co said on Friday it had begun the production of AstraZeneca Plc’s COVID-19 vaccine in Japan.The drugmaker said in a release it will prepare the vaccine in Japan, including vial filling and packaging, using the bulk solution provided by AstraZeneca.The Japanese government has already arranged to buy 120 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine, enough for 60 million people. Most of the doses will be made in Japan by Daiichi Sankyo, JCR Pharma and other local partners.Astrazeneca PlcCovid-19 VaccineVaccine DosesReutersDaiichi Sankyo CoAstraZeneca Plc 'sJapaneseJCR PharmaTOKYO

Debuts do not get much tougher than playing the two-time world and defending Olympic champions, but that is the challenge facing new Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson after Football Australia announced a fixture against Germany next month. The game in Wiesbaden on 11 April will be first time Gustavsson gets a...Read Full StoryOlympic GamesOlympicsNew ZealandMatildasInternational TeamInternational FootballAustralian FootballFootball Australia 'sCovidOlympic ChampionsThe GameHost GermanyNational TeamConsistent MatchesElite OppositionTony GustavssonSam Kerr

A research group at the RIKEN Center for Computational Science (R-CCS) has found that glycans—sugar molecules—play an important role in the structural changes that take place when the virus which causes COVID-19 invades human cells. Their discovery, which was based on supercomputer-based simulations, could contribute to the molecular design of drugs for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The research was published in the Biophysical Journal.Read Full StoryCovid-19DrugsDesignSupercomputersPublic HealthCoronavirusGlycansThe Biophysical JournalR-CCSThe University Of TokyoHuman CellsSugar MoleculesSpike ProteinsAntibodiesViruses

Any cat owner will tell you that although they are sometimes kept as pets, felines are beholden to no one. A new study from the University of Tokyo has confirmed this, showing that although pet cats are more than capable of recognising their owner’s voice they choose to ignore them - for reasons that are perhaps rooted in the evolutionary history of the animal. Carried out by Atsuko Saito and Kazutaka Shinozuka, the study tested twenty housecats in their own homes; waiting until the owner was out of sight and then playing them recordings of three strangers calling their names, followed by their owner, followed by another stranger. The researchers then analysed the cats’ responses to each call by measuring a number of factors including ear, tail and head movement, vocalization, eye dilation and ‘displacement’ – shifting their paws to move. When hearing their names’ being called the cats displayed “ orientating behaviour” (moving their heads and ears about to locate where the sound was coming from) and although they showed a greater response to their owner’s voices than strangers’, they declined to move when called by any of the volunteers. “These results indicate that cats do not actively respond with communicative behavior to owners who are calling them from out of sight, even though they can distinguish their owners’ voices,” write Saito and Shinozuka. “This cat–owner relationship is in contrast to that with dogs.” The study, published by Springer in the Animal Cognition journal , suggests that the reason for cats’ unresponsive behaviour might be traced back to the early domestication of the species, contrasting this with the relationship of humans to dogs. Recent genetic analysis has revealed that the common ancestor of the modern housecat was Felis silvestris , a species of wildcat that first came into contact with humans around 9,000 years ago. As early societies developed agriculture, these cats moved in to prey on the rodents that were attracted to stores of grain. In the words of the paper’s authors, they effectively “domesticated themselves”. “Historically speaking, cats, unlike dogs, have not been domesticated to obey humans’ orders. Rather, they seem to take the initiative in human–cat interaction.” This is in contrast to the history of dogs and humans, where the former has been bred over thousands of years to respond to orders and commands. Cats, it seems, never needed to learn. However, it's unlikely that this will dismay cat owners (or indeed, be of any surprise) and the paper notes that although “dogs are perceived by their owners as being more affectionate than cats […] dog owners and cat owners do not differ significantly in their reported attachment level to their pets”. The study concludes by observing that “the behavioural aspect of cats that cause their owners to become attached to them are still undetermined.” [This article was originally published in November 2013] Domesticated CatsCat OwnersThe CatsS VoicePetsPet OwnersAnimal BehaviorHuman InteractionThe University Of TokyoAnimal Cognition JournalPet CatsCat InteractionDog OwnersCareFelines