TOKYO

Japanese Princess Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, turned 18 on Sunday.

The princess, who is in the third year at Gakushin Girls' Senior High School in Tokyo, plans to enter a university next spring.

According to the Imperial Household Agency, the princess is enjoying her last year at the high school, playing active roles in sports and cultural festivals while studying steadily.

In a sports festival in September, her team won a basketball dribbling competition between different grades. It was her first victory in the competition during the six years of her time in junior and senior high schools.

The princess received a trophy as the representative of her team.

Her class won championships in two categories in the competition.

In a cultural festival in early November, the princess participated in a dance performance by groups of volunteers.

Performing at the end of the program, her group danced to a total of five Japanese and foreign music, dressed in a team costume. Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako watched her performance.

Princess Aiko showed interest in a series of events related to the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito, who acceded to the throne in May after his father, now Emperor Emeritus Akihito, abdicated in April.

Paying attention to news reports on the events, she watched the live broadcast of the "Sokuirei-Seiden-no-Gi" ceremony on Oct. 22, in which her father proclaimed his enthronement.

On March 11, the eighth anniversary of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan, Princess Aiko offered a silent prayer with her parents.

On Aug. 15, the 74th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II, the princess paid silent tribute at noon, while watching a TV program about the government-sponsored memorial service for the war dead, in which Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako attended for the first time since the enthronement of the new Emperor.

Jiji Press