- Reuters
Japan's Olympics minister: not government's role to look into bid payments
Japan's Olympics minister Seiko Hashimoto said it was not the central government's role to look into reports about large payments the Tokyo campaign made to various entities in the run-up to the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) vote in 2013. In response to a question from a lawmaker about Reuters' reporting on the subject, Hashimoto said it was the responsibility of the Japanese Olympic Committee and the Tokyo metropolitan government to explain the bid's activities. IOC chief Thomas Bach said last week no IOC rules were infringed by payments in 2013 and 2014 totaling more than $8 million from the Tokyo Olympic bid committee to an executive of the Tokyo organising committee.
- Nikkei Asia
Still in play: Japan's Olympic dream burns on
For a few tense hours, it looked like Tokyo 2020's first trial event that included foreign athletes would be crippled by a homegrown COVID case: Olympic champion Kohei Uchimura had tested positive for the coronavirus on Oct. 28, a week into his quarantine with seven other Japanese gymnasts. Competitors had been similarly isolated in the U.S., Russia and China, taking PCR tests two weeks, one week, then 72 hours before flying to Japan. When they landed, all 22 were tested a fourth time.
- The Japan Times
Japan denies report on Kim Jong Un Olympics invitation
Seoul – A Japanese official indicated to a visiting group of South Korean lawmakers that it would be possible to invite North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to next summer's Tokyo Olympics, a South Korean newspaper reported Wednesday, quoting one of the legislators. Kim Jin-pyo, who headed the group on a three-day visit to Tokyo through Saturday, said he was told by a high-level Japanese official involved in diplomacy that if the North Korean leader wants to attend the Olympics next July, an official...
