Tag: Yuriko Koike

Postponing The Olympics May Not be As Bad an Idea As We Think

Sporting events have been cancelled or postponed around the world, making qualifying for the Olympics difficult for nearly half of all athletes expected to take part.

At the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires in 2013, Tokyo won the right to host the Summer Olympics in 2020. The city was to join Athens, London, Paris and Los Angeles in the small group that has hosted a summer Olympics more than once.

Tokyo will now have to wait for most likely a year to join this exclusive club, however, after finally giving in to international pressure and deciding to postpone the games due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The pressure had been building over the past few days, led by Canada and Australia, both of which said they would not send athletes to Tokyo this year.

Stakeholders in the US, including the governing bodies of gymnastics, track and field, and swimming, also called for the games to be postponed. Their messages carried extra weight as the three events are key anchors of the Olympics and of special importance to broadcasters in the US.

The ever-tightening travel restrictions of the past week also made it evident that even if the games were to go ahead this year, they would do so in the absence of key members of the Olympic family. This could have included athletes from the five countries – Greece, Australia, Britain, France, and Switzerland – that have participated in every modern Summer Olympics.

There were other complications, as well. Sporting events have been cancelled or postponed around the world, making qualifying for the Olympics difficult for nearly half of all athletes expected to take part.

It was also becoming impossible to continue anti-doping testing to any meaningful degree.

Hungarian race walker Mate Helebrandt training at home in self-isolation. Photo: Attila Balazs/EPA/The Conversation

Only concerned about the bottom line

The IOC has been sharply criticised for its recalcitrance in not postponing the games sooner. Some have suggested its brand has suffered as a result.

There is no doubt that holding the Olympic flame ceremony in Greece and continuing with the torch relay was tactless at a time when fatality rates from the coronavirus were spiking in Europe and governments around the world were urging their citizens not to travel and stay away from public events.

The IOC’s decision to continue with these ceremonies and its dilatory and dithering response to the pandemic, in general, left it open to criticism that it cared only about the impact a postponement might have on its revenues.

Also read: Coronavirus: Olympics Postponed For the First Time in 124-Year History

It must be remembered that, although the IOC is an immensely rich and influential entity, it has in effect only one asset – the Olympic Games – to commercially exploit. And these come around only every two years.

But we can only speculate as to the role money played in the IOC’s reluctance to postpone the games.

To be fair to the IOC, it has said consistently that any decision on Tokyo 2020 would be guided by the health and welfare of the athletes and spectators, and based on the advice of recognised authorities such as the WHO.

The challenge of cancelling or moving the games

The logistics of reorganising an Olympics involving 11,000 athletes and thousands of support personnel and spectators will certainly be a significant undertaking. But this stands in stark contrast to the exponentially bleak figures of the toll of the virus – 12,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus on February 1, 87,000 on March 1 and now over 335,000 worldwide.

While the Olympics have been postponed, cancelled and moved in the past, this has been mainly due to the outbreak of war. (Tokyo was, for example, supposed to host the 1940 Games before they were cancelled due to the second world war.)

Indeed, the current host city contract specifically states in clause 66 that if the host country is in a state of war or civil disobedience, the IOC can at its sole discretion terminate the contract.

Natural disasters have affected the games in the past. The 1908 Olympics, originally to be held in Rome, had to be moved to London when Mount Vesuvius erupted and the Italian government was forced to divert money to projects such as the rebuilding of Naples and not the construction of Olympic venues.

Visitors wearing protective face masks following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are seen through the Olympic rings in front of the Japan Olympics Museum, a day after the announcement of the games’ postponement to 2021, in Tokyo, Japan March 25, 2020. Photo: Reuters/Naoki Ogura

It is unlikely the IOC will seek to move this year’s Tokyo Games to another city. Logistically, it would be very difficult for any country to host the games on such short notice, especially given the massive investment in physical infrastructure required at a time when the world is pumping billions into stimulus packages for their economies.

It is also not in Japan’s interest to see the games moved. Under the host city contract, the failure to host the games is one of the specific contingencies that allow the IOC to unilaterally terminate the contract without affecting its rights to claim compensation against the Tokyo organising committee.

In addition, in cases when the IOC does unilaterally terminate the contract, the organising committee agrees to waive its right to receive any form of compensation from the IOC.

Further, the organisers (effectively, Japanese taxpayers) also agree to “indemnify and hold harmless” the IOC from any third party claims in respect of the IOC’s withdrawal from the games, such as those from broadcasters.

Then there’s the small fact that Japan has already invested A$20billion in the games.

Moving the games to later in 2020 is likely not an option given the accelerating nature, for now, of the coronavirus. Hosting the games in September or October would also wreak havoc with the scheduling of both athletes and broadcasters (although the 1964 Tokyo Olympics were held in mid-October).

As we saw from the Rugby World Cup held in Japan last year, moving into autumn also coincides with the typhoon season. And the Olympics would have to contend with the football seasons in Europe and the US at that time of year.

This leaves organisers with one decent option – delaying for a full year until the summer of 2021.

Why legal claims are unlikely

Apart from the logistical challenges of postponing the games, there are significant commercial considerations related to ticketing, broadcasting, and sponsors. In simple terms, those holding tickets, those with the rights to broadcast the Olympics and those with exclusive “official” sponsorships may now attempt to seek their money back in full or in part.

The Tokyo organisers and the IOC might argue that so-called force majeure clauses apply and that the contractual commitments given to sponsors and broadcasters have been disrupted by an unforeseen, natural cause.

There are already reports the Tokyo 2020 ticketing policy says organisers would not be held responsible if the Olympics are cancelled due to a number of “force majeure” incidents, including natural disasters, war and “states of emergency connected to public health.”

While sports lawyers try to interpret these contractual clauses over the next few weeks, we all need to remember the wider context here.

If any broadcaster or sponsor tries to engage in legal action at a time when the world is facing its most serious public health emergency in a century, this may not sit well with their viewers or customers. The commercial losses sustained by large corporate sponsors for an event that can be rescheduled will engender little public sympathy at the moment.

If the Olympics do go ahead in 2021, it can then be a global celebration of the talent, hard work, and resilience of the world’s leading athletes.

For now, the world needs to support the talent, hard work and resilience of the world’s leading health professionals. They truly have an Olympian task ahead.The Conversation

Jack Anderson is professor of sports law, Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Coronavirus: Olympics Postponed For the First Time in 124-Year History

The Tokyo Olympics were postponed on Tuesday into 2021.

Tokyo/Athens: The Tokyo Olympics were postponed on Tuesday into 2021, the first such delay in the Games’ 124-year modern history, as the coronavirus crisis wrecked the last international sporting showpiece still standing this year.

Though a huge blow to Japan, which invested $12 billion in the run-up, the decision was a relief to thousands of athletes fretting over how to train as the world headed into lockdown over the disease that has claimed more than 16,500 lives.

Pressure had been building on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its powerful president Thomas Bach, with some athletes and sporting bodies critical of the time taken to make an inevitable decision.

After a call with Bach, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the July 24-August 9 competition would be rescheduled for the summer of 2021 at the latest as proof of victory over the virus.

“We asked President Bach to consider postponement of about one year to make it possible for athletes to play in the best condition,” Abe said.

“President Bach said he is in agreement 100 percent.”

The IOC confirmed that.

Though it was the first Olympics’ postponement, they were cancelled outright several times during the two 20th century World Wars. Major Cold War boycotts also disrupted the Moscow and Los Angeles Games in 1980 and 1984.


Athletes sad but relief

Athletes were disappointed but broadly endorsed the delay, given health risks and disruption to their training as gyms, stadia and swimming pools shut down around the world.

“I compete in a little bike race, which is nothing compared to what is going on in the world right now,” American Olympic BMX champion Connor Fields said, before the official announcement. “No sport is more important if it means more people might potentially die from this.”

Also read: Hubei Relaxes Restrictions as China’s new Coronavirus Infections Double

Australia’s two-time Olympic champion swimmer, Cate Campbell, said she was reeling but ready for the new challenge.

“The goal posts haven’t disappeared – just shifted,” she said, after her nation had announced it would not go to Tokyo 2020 if it went ahead.

US skateboarder and gold medal hopeful Nyjah Huston was frustrated, though, especially given his sport was scheduled to make its debut at the Tokyo.

“When skating finally makes it in the Olympics then it gets postponed,” the 25-year-old wrote on Instagram, after a delay had begun to look inevitable. “I was feelin (sic) ready too … now I’m going to have to be a year older for this!”

The coronavirus outbreak has raged around the world since early this year, infecting nearly 380,000 people and wrecking sports events from the soccer Euros to Formula One.

Despite their disappointment, not to mention the logistical headaches and financial losses coming, a poll showed about 70% of Japanese agreed with a delay.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike told reporters the delayed Games would still be branded “Tokyo 2020”.

Jumper with no sandpit

In a crowded sporting calendar, which will be making up for this year’s cancellations, World Athletics said it would be willing to move the 2021 world championships, scheduled for August 6-15 in Oregon to clear a path for the Olympics.

Also read: What Can Previous Lockdown Strategies Tell us About Ending the Rise of COVID-19?

The Athletics Association said a survey of more than 4,000 track and field competitors showed 78% wanted the Games delayed.

The association’s American founder, twice Olympic triple jump champion Christian Taylor, is among athletes unable to train due to social distancing and closure of facilities.

“There is no sandpit for me, I have not put on jump spikes for two weeks,” he told Britain’s Times newspaper.

Tuesday’s decision came 122 days before the planned opening ceremony at Japan’s newly built National Stadium, which was to usher in the 16-day carnival of sport featuring 11,000 athletes from 206 nations and territories.

It was not the first time a Japanese Olympics has run into problems. Both the 1940 Summer and Winter Olympic Games were due to be held in Japan but were cancelled due to World War Two.

It was not yet clear whether the 57% of athletes who had already secured spots in Tokyo would need to qualify again for the re-arranged Olympics.

The torch relay was being cancelled.

Japan’s Abe Takes Aim at New Parties During Election Campaign

The October 22 election pits Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition against the less than one-month-old Party of Hope headed by popular Yuriko Koike.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is also ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader, attends an election campaign rally in Fukushima, Japan, October 10, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is also ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader, attends an election campaign rally in Fukushima, Japan, October 10, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Tokyo: Election campaigning began in earnest in Japan on Tuesday with conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe aiming to shake off suspected cronyism scandals and repulse the challenge from an upstart new party to extend his near-five year hold on power.

The October 22 election pits Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition against the less than one-month-old Party of Hope headed by popular Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike, a former LDP lawmaker often floated as a possible first female Japanese premier.

Calling for a snap election, Abe had said he needed to renew his mandate to cope with a “national crisis” stemming from rising regional tensions over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes and the demographic time-bomb of Japan‘s fast-ageing, shrinking population.

Opposition disarray and an uptick in his own ratings, which had rebounded after sinking due to a series of scandals, had encouraged the 63-year-old Abe to take the plunge.

But, the sudden emergence of Koike’s party, which also appeals to conservative voters, could upset Abe’s calculation. The main opposition Democratic Party imploded last month and a big chunk of its candidates are running on the Party of Hope ticket. Others created a small, liberal party.

In his first official campaign speech, Abe attacked the opposition for creating new parties and wooing voters with populist slogans.

“What creates our future is not a boom or slogan. It is policy that creates our future,” Abe said in Fukushima, northeast Japan. “We just cannot afford to lose.”

The LDP-led coalition had a two-thirds “super majority” of seats in parliament’s lower house before dissolution, so losing its simple majority would be a major upset.

Recent opinion polls show the LDP in the lead and some analysts think Abe could even repeat his past landslide victories, since Koike appears to be losing momentum.

A soggy performance for the LDP, however, could prompt calls from inside the party to replace Abe or deny him a third term as LDP leader when his tenure ends in September 2018.

If he did secure that third term, Abe would be in a strong position to become Japan‘s longest-serving premier.

Shortage of hope?

Koike, who defied the LDP last year to run successfully for governor, calls her fledgling party a “reformist, conservative” group and is pledging to break free from the fetters of vested interests – an often popular campaign slogan in Japan.

Head of Japan's Party of Hope and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike speaks at a debate session ahead of October 22 lower house election at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan October 8, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Head of Japan’s Party of Hope and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike speaks at a debate session ahead of October 22 lower house election at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan October 8, 2017. Credit: Reuters

“We have a surplus of things in this country, but what we don’t have is hope for the future,” said Koike, 65, kicking off her campaign in Tokyo.

Koike has repeatedly said she won’t run for a seat this time so would not be eligible for the premiership. She has until 5:00 pm on Tuesday to change her mind and register as a candidate.

She has also declined to say whom her party would support for premier when parliament convenes after the election, leaving the door open to a variety of possible tie-ups including with Abe’s LDP.

The Party of Hope echoes Abe’s LDP on security and diplomacy – it backs tough sanctions on North Korea and controversial security legislation enacted in 2015 to expand the military’s role overseas.

Koike also agrees with Abe that the post-war, US-drafted, pacifist constitution should be amended, though they are not necessarily agreed on what changes are needed.

On economic policies, Koike’s party has sought to differentiate itself by calling for an end to nuclear power by 2030 and a freeze on a sales tax hike planned for 2019.

Abe’s government wants to keep nuclear power as a key part of Japan‘s energy mix and raise the sales tax but spend more of the revenues on education and child care.

A centre-left Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, formed from the rump of the failed Democratic Party, aims to get support from voters satisfied with neither conservative option.

Abe’s LDP had 288 seats in the lower house before it was dissolved for the election, while its junior partner the Komeito had 35. The total number of seats has been cut to 465 from 475.

(Reuters)

‘My Party Offers Centrist Choices to Voters’, Says Japan’s Koike

Koike’s Party of Hope is challenging Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition in an October 22 election.

Head of Japan's Party of Hope and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike speaks at a debate session ahead of October 22 lower house election at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan October 8, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Head of Japan’s Party of Hope and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike speaks at a debate session ahead of October 22 lower house election at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan October 8, 2017. Credit: Reuters

Tokyo: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said on Sunday her new party aims to offer voters a “middle of the fairway” choice, seeking to differentiate her group from ruling, conservative Liberal Democratic Party and smaller, left-leaning opposition parties.

Koike’s Party of Hope, launched just last month, is challenging Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition in an October 22 election, promising to freeze a planned 2019 sales tax hike and consider a new tax on companies’ retained earnings.

“If I use a golf course metaphor, right now, I believe we have right (wing parties) and left (wing parties) and nothing in between. So we will present ourselves as the fairway, the very centre of the way,” Koike told a policy debate by major party leaders.

The outlook for the election is unclear but some analysts say Koike’s party may be losing steam because it had too little time to prepare for the snap poll. Her decision not to run for a lower house seat herself could also deter voters, they said.

A Yomiuri newspaper survey published online later on Sunday showed that 32% of voters planned to cast ballots for the LDP in proportional representation districts where voters pick a party, not a candidate, outstripping the 13% opting for the Party of Hope. Another 7% chose the small, new left-leaning Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CSDJ).

Koike said her party’s policies aim to bring a new idea such as basic income and will be closer to consumers.

“The idea of basic income is still experimental but we think this is something we should consider in the future,” she said.

But Koike declined to reveal who would lead a government should her party, formed only about two weeks ago by her supporters and some opposition lawmakers, be in a position to form one.

“I will think about it after we see the results of the election,” she said.

Koike, a former LDP lawmaker, has repeatedly denied she would run for a seat in the election, which means she could not lead a government herself as the constitution stipulates a prime minister has to be selected from elected lawmakers.

That has led to speculation her Party of Hope may tie up with some LDP lawmakers who have been alienated by Abe, such as former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba.

She told Reuters on Friday that all options were on the table regarding whom her party would back when parliament convenes to vote on a prime minister after the election.

While Party of Hope’s economic policies differ from those of Abe’s conservative LDP, but many of its security and diplomatic policies echo LDP’s agenda, including revision to Japan‘s pacifist constitution.

The campaign for the October 22 election kicks off formally on October 10.

Abe reiterated during the debate that his government would remain in power if the ruling coalition wins a simple majority of the 465 seats up for grabs, although some analysts suggest he himself could face pressure to resign if his LDP fares badly.

The Yomiuri survey showed support for Abe’s cabinet had dipped to 41% from 43% in late September.

(Reuters)

First Woman Governor Elected In Tokyo as Japan Prepares For Olympics

As Japan prepares for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, Tokyo has elected Yuriko Koike as the Governor for Tokyo. Koike said that the Olympics will give them a chance to rebuild the Tokyo for the future.

Former defense minister Yuriko Koike, a candidate planning to run in the Tokyo Governor election, attends a joint news conference with other potential candidates at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan July 13, 2016. Issei Kato, Reuters/Files

Former defense minister Yuriko Koike, a candidate planning to run in the Tokyo Governor election, attends a joint news conference with other potential candidates at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, Japan July 13, 2016. Issei Kato, Reuters/Files

Tokyo: Voters in the Japanese capital elected their first woman governor on Sunday, after two predecessors stepped down over scandals that clouded the city’s preparations to host the 2020 summer Olympic games.

Yuriko Koike, Japan’s first female defence minister, beat former bureaucrat and fellow member of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s party Hiroya Masuda, as well as liberal journalist Shuntaro Torigoe, according to an exit poll by public broadcaster NHK.

Koike, 64, angered the Tokyo branch of Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party by not getting its approval before announcing her candidacy for city governor. The LDP instead drafted Masuda, 64, who once served as governor of a rural prefecture.

“Taking this result very heavily, as the new governor I would like move forward firmly with the administration of the metropolis,” Koike, an experienced politician fluent in English and Arabic, told supporters.

“I would like to move forward with a metropolitan administration such as has never happened, never been seen, together with all of you.”

The NHK exit poll showed Masuda was in second place, with Torigoe, a 76-year-old cancer survivor who was backed by several opposition parties, trailed both.

The sprawling city of some 13.5 million people faces a plethora of problems such as an aging population, daycare shortage, and the ever-present possibility of a big earthquake.

But a big issue in the campaign was the 2020 Olympics, which Japan hopes will spur its economy, struggling to escape decades of deflation.

Construction of the main stadium has been delayed and the original logo for the games had to be scrapped after plagiarism accusations.

After the resignations of the city’s two previous governors, Koike will be responsible for saving Tokyo’s reputation as host for the games.

One of her first duties will be to travel to Rio de Janeiro when the curtain comes down on next month’s games there to accept the Olympic flag as the next host.

“The Olympics are right in front of us. I want to use them as a chance to build a new Tokyo for beyond 2020,” Koike said when the campaign began.

Though the LDP and its coalition partner backed Masuda, fallout for Abe will likely be minimal despite Masuda’s loss.

“This is basically a Tokyo issue,” said Kenji Yumoto, vice chairman of the Japan Research Institute think-tank. “Abe’s prestige probably won’t be damaged and support for the LDP won’t fall.”