SAPPORO -- The Sapporo city government announced on Feb. 3 that it will stop requiring employees to pay for their own business cards, opting to cover the costs with public funds as a general rule.

SAPPORO--After withdrawing Sapporo’s bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics amid declining public support, Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto plans to keep the city’s candidacy alive for the 2038 Games.

It ended at Sapporo City Hall where there is a cauldron from the 1972 Winter Olympics. Mai Asada, a former figure skater and the PR Ambassador for the Games, led the first group of runners as a ...