Speed skaters Joji Kato and Keiichiro Nagashima are once again eyeing 500 metres Olympic gold and Japanese fans are hoping it will not be another double disappointment.
A sensational final round fetched Jeev Milkha Singh his second title of the season at the Nagashima Shigeo Invitational Sega Sammy Cup in Hokkaido.
The Olympic flame arrived in Tokyo on Sunday for the second leg of a six-week relay in the run-up to the Athens Games.