Japanese prince dies after squash court collapse
Prince Takamado, a cousin of Japanese Emperor Akihito and an outspoken advocate for less secrecy surrounding the royal family, died in a Tokyo hospital after collapsing on a squash court today. He was 47.
Takamado collapsed while having a squash lesson from an instructor along with the Canadian ambassador Robert Wright at the Canadian Embassy
He was unconscious when he arrived at hospital and died hours later, state broadcaster NHK television reported.
A spokesman with the Imperial Household Agency declined to comment.
The prince, whose birth name was Norihito, was the third son of Prince Mikasa, former Emperor Hirohito’s youngest brother.
He was seventh in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne, believed to be the world’s oldest hereditary monarchy.
