Bullying scandal hits Japan school baseball tournament

One of Japan's most popular sports tournaments is reeling after the sudden withdrawal of a team whose teenage players have been accused of abusing a younger teammate.

- Justin McCurry

Koryo high school, which had been representing Hiroshima prefecture in the summer high-school baseball championships, announced on Sunday it would no longer take part.

The team's withdrawal comes after a public outcry over reports that several of its members had physically abused a junior player.

The event's organising body issued a severe reprimand to the school in March after its internal investigation found that four students had assaulted a younger boy in a dormitory in January.

The revelations sparked anger on social media, including calls for the team's expulsion, as well as a bomb threat and incidents in which Koryo students were chased on their way to and from school.