As Japan Prepares for the Postponed Olympics, a Conservative Old Guard Is Dragging the Country Down BY GAVAN MCCORMACK 02.24.2021
“A sexist outburst from Japan’s Olympics chief derailed preparations for the rescheduled Tokyo Games and provoked an international furor. Mori Yoshiro’s antiquated attitudes are rooted in a conservative, authoritarian worldview that’s deeply entrenched on the Japanese right.”
“Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games organizing committee president Yoshiro Mori resigned after making sexist remarks. (Franck Robichon / Pool / AFP via Getty)”
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On March 25, the Olympic torch relay is due to set out from Fukushima with its “sacred flame” on a grand national circuit of Japan, visiting all forty-seven of the country’s prefectures, and arriving at the Tokyo Games venue in time for the opening ceremony on July 23. But will this eagerly awaited scenario really play out according to plan?
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded Japan the Games in the first place because Prime Minister Abe Shinzo assured them in Buenos Aires in September 2013 that the legacy of the Fukushima nuclear disaster was “under control.” According to Abe, there would be no problem with Japan playing host to the world.
In the Abe design, adopted by his successor, Suga Yoshihide, in November 2021, the “Recovery Games” would signal to the world Japan’s recovery from the 2011 quake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown. The grim fact, however, is that Abe’s assurance was unfounded.
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