This year's wackiness — notably from non-candidates renting campaign billboard space — is proving exceptional, and residents have flooded election offices with angry calls and messages.

Onigiri Bongo has served the humble onigiri, or rice ball, for 60 years. The current owner is the widow of the original owner, whom she married after discovering the restaurant as a newcomer to Tokyo.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's exit raises the specter of a return to a "revolving door" succession of Japanese leaders.

The ceremony organizers used artistic elements to show the athletes a taste of ordinary life in Japan, something they haven't been exposed to due to pandemic restrictions.

NPR's team in Tokyo put together our favorite moments of the Games, where participants showed their athleticism, sportsmanship, and what motivated them to compete.

The swimmers are now leaving Japan and the spotlight moves to the track and field events at Olympic Stadium. We'll walk you through the biggest things to watch for until the closing ceremony.

For the past year, polls in Japan showed overwhelming opposition to the Tokyo Olympics as the pandemic raged around the world. Now, with the Games underway, some residents are changing their opinions.

Daily infections are nearly quadruple the numbers reported just a week ago. Japan's prime minister, who has denied the Olympics are to blame, has extended a state of emergency to the end of August.

Some of the athletes who tested positive for the coronavirus were first-time Olympians. They all must wait in a "quarantine hotel" for up to 10 days and watch their teammates compete without them.

Minnesota native Sunisa Lee is the first Hmong American to make a U.S. Olympic team. The gymnast won a gold medal in Tokyo Thursday.

Olympic organizers say another 24 Games-related personnel have tested positive for the coronavirus in the past day. Since July 1, 193 people linked to the Games have received positive test results.

Softball returns to the Olympics after a 13-year absence. But it won't be around for long. It's not on the schedule at the 2024 Games though athletes are hoping it'll make a return in 2028.

Growing alarm about the Tokyo Games resulting in a surge of coronavirus cases has pushed Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to announce a new round of emergency measures.

The Japanese government remains adamant that the games will proceed as planned, even as local governments and protesters express rising concern about hosting the event during the pandemic.

Tokyo organizers on Saturday announced that foreign spectators will be barred from attending this year's Olympic and Paralympic Games due to concerns over COVID-19.