都知事選、CNNの記事

Colorful contenders run for Tokyo governorship

An eccentric inventor, a comedian and an expert in the Chinese practice of feng shui were among those who launched campaigns on Thursday in the race to become the next governor of Japan's crowded capital of Tokyo.

The dark horse contenders are adding spice to a race that analysts say is likely to boil down to one between incumbent Shintaro Ishihara and his main reformist challenger, Shiro Asano.

Yoshiro Nakamatsu, the self-proclaimed inventor of the floppy disk and more than 3,000 other gadgets including a golf putter with a "sonic dynamism mechanism" that his Web site says improves your score and your health, is making his fourth run for the job.

At a news conference this week, Nakamatsu, 78, promised not only to lower taxes but to safeguard Tokyo's 12.6 million residents from missile attacks with a new invention.

"I'm the only candidate who can protect the people of Tokyo with an invention that would make North Korean missiles do a U-turn," Nakamatsu said in a campaign speech on Thursday.

North Korea shocked Tokyo by test-firing a ballistic missile over Japanese territory in 1998, and last year Pyongyang's barrage of missile tests and its first nuclear test jolted the region.

Perhaps inspired by another comedian's recent election as a governor in rural Japan, 50-year-old Kinzo Sakura, a former member of a comedy duo, also threw his hat in the ring with a pledge to ensure Tokyoites' "right to live and pursue happiness".

Feng shui expert
Kumiko Uchikawa, an expert in feng shui, a traditional Chinese practice that tries to improve people's lives by arranging space to achieve harmony, was also among the 12 candidates who had registered to run in the April 8 poll by midday. Registration closed Thursday at 5 p.m. (0800 GMT).

The 49-year-old Uchikawa has said she wants to improve the environment in Tokyo for working mums, Kyodo said.

Besides the less conventional candidates, Communist-backed ex-ward mayor Manzo Yoshida and well-known architect Kisho Kurokawa are also challenging Ishihara, who is seeking a third term.

Ishihara, 74, is admired by some as a forceful leader but disliked by others for his rants against China, foreigners, women past child-bearing age and homosexuals.

"I'm supporting him because he can get things done and is reliable," said a 60-year-old housewife who was listening to Ishihara's first campaign speech in western Tokyo.

A prize-winning novelist once seen as prime ministerial material, Ishihara has the backing of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and media polls have given him an early lead.

But analysts say Asano just might give him a run for his money with the support of the main opposition Democratic Party.

Among the policies the two are clashing over are Ishihara's planned bid for the 2016 Olympics and his policy of forcing high school teachers to stand and sing the national anthem -- seen by some as a symbol of past Japanese militarism -- at school ceremonies or face punishment if they do not.

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お気楽な記事。こんな記事で金が貰えるならなんと美味しい商売。

佐藤棋聖、２００６年度タイトル戦成績

名人戦：挑戦者になれず。
棋聖戦：○佐藤棋聖　３－０　●鈴木８段　防衛
王位戦：●佐藤棋聖　２－４　○羽生王位　挑戦失敗
王座戦：●佐藤棋聖　０－３　○羽生王座　挑戦失敗
竜王戦：●佐藤棋聖　３－４　○渡辺竜王　挑戦失敗
王将戦：●佐藤棋聖　３－４　○羽生王将　挑戦失敗
棋王戦：？佐藤棋聖　２－２　？森内棋王

タイトル戦ではない棋戦の決勝戦。
日本シリーズ：○佐藤棋聖　－　●郷田９段　優勝
NHK杯戦：○佐藤棋聖　－　●森内名人　優勝　

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竜王戦、王将戦ともに最終局で破れ、タイトル奪回ならず。今日の棋王戦の最終戦で森内タイトル保持者に勝てるか？

佐藤棋聖の対局は歴代３位タイ、勝利は歴代７位

２００６年度は、現在８５局、５６勝。
対局と勝利の歴代順位。
対局
１位　羽生善治　８９局　２０００年
２位　米長邦雄　８８局　１９８０年
３位　谷川浩司　８６局　１９８５年
４位　中原誠　　８２局　１９８２年

勝利
１位　羽生善治　６８勝　２０００年
２位　羽生善治　６４勝　１９８８年
３位　森内俊之　６３勝　１９９１年
４位　羽生善治　６１勝　１９９２年
４位　木村一基　６１勝　２００１年
６位　羽生善治　６０勝　２００４年
７位　中原誠　　５６勝　１９７０年
７位　谷川浩司　５６勝　１９８５年
７位　森下卓　　５６勝　１９９０年

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３月２８日の森内戦に勝てば、５７勝で単独７位。負ければ５６勝で７位タイ。
勝利は羽生だらけ。「権藤、権藤、雨、権藤」を思い出す。

西友が米国産牛肉販売再開…錦糸町店で先行販売

サンスポより抜粋。
昨年７月の輸入再開決定後、国内の大手スーパーが米国産牛肉を販売するのは初めて。
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そういえば、吉野家の牛丼を最近食べていない。５回は食べたと思うが、もういいか。

松坂にとって、努力とは

SI.comより抜粋。SIとDMのQ&A。
SI = SI, DM = 松坂

SI: Didn't you begin playing baseball as an outfielder?

DM: Yes. Up through 10th grade. Up until that year I played both pitcher and outfield. Starting in 11th grade I converted to pitcher.

SI: Was that your choice?

DM: Initially I wanted to make it as a professional baseball player as a hitter. The fact that the team had sort of ran out of pitchers might have had something to do with [converting].

SI: You have a slight turn in your delivery away from the hitter, which American coaches do not teach. Why?

DM: I initially had a tendency to open up my shoulder too much. To compensate for that I developed that pitching form and that's what stuck. The more I rotate my body, if I do it too much it takes a long time to turn around. I'm very conscious of not overdoing my shoulder turn.

SI: The Japanese concept of maximum training effort, doryoku, seems very different from American training.

DM: Doryoku, doryoku ... hmm .. I've never been one to sort of say self-congratulatingly I worked very hard. Doryoku just means practice, and to me that's self evident. You practice. Instead of looking at it from a perspective of maximum effort, I've had a goal in mind and it's practice toward that goal which is most important.

I'm wondering out loud what the outside image is of the concept of doryoku -- if that simply doesn't exist in America or is similar but different. If there's something you can't do, if there's a skill you don't have, it's natural to do what it takes to strive to that point. But that's a highly personal thing. If you ask other Japanese players you might get a different response each time. There are people who are very stoic and focused on maximum effort every time.

SI: You said you have "a goal in mind." What is it?

DM: Ultimately baseball is a team sport. For me the ultimate goal was to win the Japan series and become national champions. As part of that large objective there are many small goals that need to be accomplished. The one goal, of course, is to win the championship. But in the context of that overarching one there are many, many more to get there.

SI: What was your between-starts routine in Japan?

DM: In the typical five days between I would play light catch the next day [after the start], Day 2 was a day off, Day 3 I would do long toss, Day 4 or 5 I would throw one bullpen session. If my pitch count was low on any given start I may do one abbreviated [bullpen] session on day 1.

SI: In the WBC championship game against Cuba you gave up a home run in the bottom of the first and then really locked down the game. Was that a good example of your competitiveness?

DM: That was the first batter in the bottom of the first. We had established a four-run lead. Given the [tournament] limitations on the pitch count, I went in sort of relaxed, without a sense of urgency. I came in with the thinking to let them hit into outs and keep my pitch count down. As soon as they hit the home run, I knew that philosophy is not going to work. I have to play aggressively.

SI: Do you anticipate any difficulty getting used to the major league baseball, which is slightly larger and has bigger seams?

DM: When I played in the WBC last year we played with the major league ball. We practiced for about three months prior to the WBC with it. At that time it was a difficult adjustment. Having gone through it, I see no problem.

The leather quality is different. The Japanese quality was something that I had gotten used to. On that level, there is just a little bit of difference. The Japanese ball may be easier to get movement. As I get used to [the major league ball] there may be more of a chance to get more movement on the ball.

SI: How do you like to spend time when you are not playing baseball?

DM: I enjoy playing golf. On the off days it's easier playing golf or spending time with the family, or going for a drive.

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努力とは、練習のこと、選手にとって当たり前のこと。

桑田はどうなる？

MLB HPより抜粋。
Masumi Kuwata was taken off the field on a golf cart during the eighth inning on Monday, representing the latest Pirates injury, but also a sad turn for the Japanese righty whose dream is to one day play in the Major Leagues.

Kuwata, 38, had survived many rounds of Spring Training cuts and earned praise from manager Jim Tracy, who seemed, if anything, pleasantly surprised by the Japanese pitcher who'd spent the previous 21 seasons with the Yomiuri [Tokyo] Giants. He seemed poised to make the roster at Triple-A Indianapolis, until a nasty spill in the eighth inning of a 2-2 tie with Toronto put things on hold for a bit.

Kuwata was attempting to back up third base after Toronto's John McDonald knocked a bloop single with a man on first. The right-hander became entangled with home plate umpire Wally Bell, who was heading to third as well, and fell face-down near the coaches' box, where he remained unmoving until surrounded by teammates and head team trainer Brad Henderson.

"He stepped on my left ankle, and I believe at that point he twisted his [right] ankle," said Bell. "I saw him before he saw me. I tried to put my hand out, but we collided."

Kuwata was taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital for X-rays, and returned to the clubhouse not long after the game, wearing a plastic splint. He was ushered immediately into the training room and had the door shut behind him.

Kuwata was diagnosed as having a grade 3 sprain of his right ankle, which was reported to be severely swollen. So much so, in fact, that doctors are not ruling out a break. Grade three is the most serious sprain, on a scale of 1-3. Kuwata will be re-evaluated on Tuesday morning by team physician Patrick DeMeo.

Monday was just Kuwata's second outing since returning from a left ankle sprain he suffered on March 9. He sat out nine days that time around, and seemed to be eager to get back into action immediately. It's unknown how long he'll be sidelined this time around.

"He's done a great job, and it really is a shame because, had we not dealt with the left ankle earlier, our intention was to continue to pitch the guy," Tracy said. "Get him out there, and find out exactly what it is that we have from the standpoint of physical capability."

Grabow coming along: Tracy said that southpaw John Grabow was, "very, very encouraged" about the throwing elbow that's been threatening to place the reliever on the disabled list to start the season. Grabow will throw a bullpen session on Thursday, marking the latest checkpoint on his road back to the bullpen.

"Grabow's doing work [a lot] earlier than we even thought he would be," Tracy said. "John Grabow was such a good pitcher for us last year, and such a terrific teammate, that when you see the smile on his face that he's had over the last four or five days ... all you have to do is look at him, and you know how his elbow feels."

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右足首のねんざのひどさが、１－３のうちで、一番悪い３では選手生命を絶たれる可能性もあるのかもしれない。本当に良くやったと思う。
１９９４年は、ストのためワールドシリーズがなく、代わりに日本シリーズが米国で放映されていた。桑田と工藤が、評価されていたが、その時の実力ならMLBでも通用していたかもしれない。次の年に、野茂が新人王を取った。