After a week of debate over his inappropriate comments that triggered an international uproar, the head of the organising committee for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic has resigned from his post as president. In a meeting with the Tokyo 2020 executive on February 12, 2021, Yashiro Mori, former Japanese prime minister, tendered his resignation.
According to a report in The Guardian, Mori said, “My inappropriate remarks have caused chaos, and I would like to express my deepest apologies to the members of the council and executive board, as well as the entire community. The important thing is that the Olympic Games are held in July. If I am going to be [an obstacle] to their delivery by remaining in my position, then that is something we should avoid. The Games should continue under new leadership, so I’m announcing today that I’m stepping down as president of the organising committee.”
If that’s not all, Mori’s alleged successor, Saburō Kawabuchi, is said to have withdrawn his candidacy during the same meeting, after criticism that there was little discussion or transparency when Mori approached him to take over. These events transpired after current Japanese PM, Yoshihide Suga, proposed appointing a woman, or a younger man, to assume the position.
In a statement to Japanese press, a spokesperson for the government said, “We can’t give the impression that things have changed unless we install a woman or see a generational shift,” the Fuji News Network reported. According to a source associated with the Games, the Mori controversy has done “serious reputation damage”, and further added that many officials want a woman to replace Mori.
For now, the organising committee will set up a panel—with an equal ratio of men and women—to nominate a successor. Toshiro Muto, the chief executive of Tokyo 2020, addressed local media, saying, “The process has to be transparent,” adding that Mori’s resignation “should not cause any delay in preparations for the Games.”
Mori, who has been known for making inconsiderate and contentious remarks in the past, has now spoken up in defence. “I didn’t mean for [my remarks] to be neglectful of women but I guess it was broadcasted in that way. I actually worked a lot to allow women to be able to ‘voice out’, even more than men. There were times when the women were not speaking out but I had appointed a couple of women so I could give them an environment and an opportunity to state whatever it was they wanted to say.”
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