Champion Japanese runner freezes eggs

Japanese champion runner Tomomi Bitoh completed a 170-km race in the Himalayas, then made a beeline for a Tokyo clinic to freeze her eggs.

The 33-year-old is one of a growing number of Japanese women joining in a trend in the world's most advanced ageing society.

"I don't think that's something I can do 10 or 20 years from now, after having a child," said Bitoh.

The average number of children born to a Japanese woman fell to a fresh low of 1.20 in 2023, data from the health ministry.

The figure is far below the 2.07 experts consider necessary. Japan calls it a "quiet national emergency".

The government, says difficulty balancing a career and child-rearing are among key deterrents, earmarking billions of dollars.

Last year Tokyo authorities started offering subsidies of up to 300,000 yen (HK$15,020) to women between 18 and 39 to have their eggs frozen.

A record 55% of single men and women in their late teens and 20s have no desire to have a child, annual poll by Rohto Pharmaceutical showed.