TOKYO: Record crowds flocked to Japan's Imperial Palace on Saturday to celebrate the 84th birthday of Emperor Akihito as he prepares to abdicate in April 2019.

Around 45,900 people—the biggest birthday crowd of the emperor's three-decade reign— thronged the palace for his address, according to the Imperial Household Agency, waving small Japanese flags in the winter sunshine and shouting "Banzai" or "long live."

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