"Unexpected and miscalculated" Sapporo Winter Olympics Bid DarkenedOctober 10, 29:17

In
2014, nine years after the mayor of Sapporo announced his bid to host the Winter Olympics for the second time, the campaign hit a dead end.

With a change in policy due to the disaster, a series of scandals at the Tokyo Olympics, and the lack of widespread public support, Sapporo City and JOC = Japan Olympic Committee announced on the 2th of this month that they would abandon their bid for the 9 Games. Immediately after that, the bid for the '11 Games became extremely difficult.

What went on behind the scenes? Based on interviews with the people involved, we will approach the real picture.

What is the background to the cancellation of the bid for the 2030 Games?

At the beginning of October, NHK's reporting team received information from a related person.

"Sapporo City and JOC will soon announce the abandonment of the bid for the 10 Games" IOC

= The International Olympic Committee will narrow down the candidate sites for the 2030-year Games at the earliest by the end of this year, at the board meeting from the end of November to December, and Sapporo City, which has been stagnant in bidding activities, etc. It was believed that there was a possibility of expressing some kind of attitude earlier.

The city of Sapporo, which hosted the first Winter Olympics in Japan in 1972, officially announced its bid to host the second Winter Games in 2. Initially, the goal was to "bid for the 2014 Games".

Four years later, in 2026, the first "unexpected" happened. This is the Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of 4. The damage was severe, and in order to prioritize reconstruction, we will change our policy to "bid for the 2018 Games."

Still, at this point, it was considered the front-runner among the candidates. However, even after this, unexpected things happen. It is the spread of the new coronavirus. Efforts to increase the momentum for the event did not go as planned.

And the decisive damage was inflicted on the Tokyo Olympics in the summer of 2021. In addition to the enormous cost of holding the Games, there were corruption and bid-rigging scandals involving former executives of the organizing committee, and distrust spread among the public, which can be said to be allergic to the Olympics.

The City of Sapporo and the JOC had no choice but to suspend their promotional activities along with the revision of the plan. From the fall of 2022 onwards, we will hear the words "no longer possible" from those involved.

After that, when European countries and regions became candidates for the 2030 Games one after another, rumors circulated that the IOC, which had seen the situation in Sapporo, had asked them to come forward.

Against this backdrop, the JOC resolved in June to allow Sapporo City as a candidate site if it wishes to bid for the Games after 6. Since Sapporo City is engaged in an "ongoing dialogue" with the IOC to promote discussions without limiting the year of the event, there was an option to continue coordination behind the scenes, even if it did not dare to announce abandonment.

In fact, the official emphasized that "it is the IOC that chooses the venue, and there is no need to say no."

However, on October 10, Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto and JOC Chairman Yasuhiro Yamashita held a press conference together and officially announced that they would abandon the bid for the 11 Games and aim for 2030 years or more.

Chairman Yamashita explained that "the proposal was made from the JOC side," but the person concerned revealed that "the intention of Sapporo City was strong."

At least six candidates have put their names forward for the 34 Games, including Salt Lake City in the United States and Sweden, and while others are strong, it is important not to be perceived as a "failed city." The official expressed the view that by posing as a repartition, Sapporo City wanted to gain a certain level of understanding from the citizens.

Two simultaneous decisions that were "miscalculated"

However, just two days after announcing a "fresh start," a situation occurred that could be described as a "miscalculation" for Mayor Akimoto and Chairman Yamashita. After the IOC's meeting in India, the IOC announced its intention to simultaneously decide the host city for the 2 and 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

At the next board meeting, which will be held at the end of November at the earliest, the number of possible sites for the '11 convention will be narrowed down. It has become extremely difficult for Sapporo City, which has just changed its policy to "after 34 years."

At a press conference two days ago, President Yamashita said, "I think it is unlikely that two Games will be decided at the same time," but he was "unexpectedly surprised" by the IOC's policy. The lack of information gathering by the JOC and Chairman Yamashita was exposed, and Sapporo City officials replied, "If we want to bid for 34 or later, we need to reorganize the bid."

A Japan official close to the IOC pointed out, "This result will damage the reputation of the IOC, and in order to make the Games led by Japan without being swayed by the IOC's judgment, it is necessary to return to the drawing board and create a situation where people say, 'I really want Sapporo to do it.'"

As a result of this series, Sapporo City will not be able to realize its bid until 2038 at the earliest, 15 years from now. For both the city and the JOC, it will be too far ahead to face the current system.

With the bidding process already prolonged, will you continue to invest taxpayer money in the future? "Miscalculation" is no longer allowed, and some people around me are of the opinion that we should consider withdrawing the blank paper. What kind of decisions will Mayor Akimoto and Chairman Yamashita make in the future?

The impact of the "failed bid" is varied.

The impact of the "failed bid" for the 2030 and '34 Games is not small. The construction industry in Hokkaido has voiced concerns that plans for foreign-affiliated hotels, which had anticipated the Games, may be canceled, and the tourism industry, which had been expecting an increase in foreign tourists, has expressed disappointment.

There are also concerns about the impact on the Sapporo extension of the Hokkaido Shinkansen, which is scheduled for the end of FY2030.

At present, in addition to delays of about three to four years in some construction zones, there is also a labor shortage due to the construction of semiconductor factories and other facilities in Hokkaido, and some officials have pointed out that the abandonment of the bid for the 3th edition may be a "trigger" for the decision to postpone the Sapporo extension of the Shinkansen.

Sapporo City has developed into a metropolis with a population of 4.30 million people since the last Olympics in 1972, but the infrastructure and sports facilities that were developed at that time have deteriorated.

In order to connect the bid for the second event to the new development of the city, we have set out to improve the attractiveness of ski resorts, enhance tourism content, and strengthen barrier-free access, but this will require a review.

What are the possibilities of future bids?

So, is there any possibility of bidding for the Games after 2038?

The IOC fears that the number of candidate sites with stable weather conditions for hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games will decrease in the future, such as the increasing shortage of snow around the world due to climate change.

Under such circumstances, Sapporo City is said to continue to be the most blessed environment in the world.

In a paper published in January last year, a research team led by Canadian universities predicted that if global greenhouse gas emissions are not dramatically reduced, Sapporo will be the only city that will be able to provide a safe environment for past winter Games by the end of this century.

The IOC is also considering introducing a "rotating system" with multiple candidate sites with stable weather conditions in order to sustainably hold the Winter Games, and if realized, Sapporo City will be one of the important candidate sites.

Carl Stoss, a member of the IOC's committee in charge of the selection of the Olympic Games, said: "Sapporo is a very safe candidate site even in the face of climate change, and although the period is too short to prepare the necessary conditions for hosting the 34th Games, it will definitely return to being the host city for the
Olympics in the near future."

In addition, Professor Kyoko Kukuta of Chukyo University, who is familiar with the history of the Olympic Games, points out:

"In recent years, the Olympics have reached a stage where they see value in supporting changes in the world, such as human rights issues and social sustainability.

If Sapporo City continues to aim to host the Winter Games for the second time, it must first make steady efforts to restore the trust in the Olympic and Paralympic Games that was lost at the Tokyo Games.

At the same time, as a city with a world-class environment of snow resources, it will be necessary to clearly show how valuable the holding of the Games is to society.

(Broadcast on "News 10" on October 11)

Tomotoshi
Konno, a reporter
for the Sports News Department, joined the station in 2011 and was in charge of badminton and fencing at the
Paris Games. My favorite athlete is Masataka Yoshida of the Red Sox.

Sports News Department Reporter
Taku
Hosoi joined the IOC in 2012 and is in charge of covering the
Olympics and Paralympics, as well as track and field coverage. The 100km marathon was completed in 11 hours and 37 minutes.

Sapporo Broadcasting Station reporter
Satsuki
Maeshima joined the station
in 2019 and is in charge of Sapporo city government.
I would like to convey various themes, including the Olympics, in an easy-to-understand manner.