More than half of Tokyoites oppose hosting the 2021 Olympics

Text by: Farid Achache Follow

For the inhabitants of Tokyo, the organization of the Olympic Games in 2021 in their city is no longer a priority. For the first time since the attribution to the Japanese capital of the Olympic Games, a little more than half of the Tokyoites are even opposed to it.

Publicity

Mentalities are changing. In 2013, the Tokyo Stock Exchange celebrated without restraint the award of the 2020 Olympics to the Japanese capital. At the close, the Nikkei 225 index of featured securities had jumped 2.48%. Construction and tourism businesses were taking advantage of the good news. 

At the time, Japan hoped to attract 30 million tourists in 2020 against a total of 8.3 million in 2012. Seven years later, the optimism is no longer there. Between the economic crisis that is hitting the country and that of the coronavirus, the inhabitants of the city of Tokyo no longer really want to see the Games arriving at home.

31.1% of Tokyoites favor smaller Games

Today, for the first time since the allocation to the Japanese capital of the Olympic Games, a little more than half of the inhabitants of Tokyo are opposed to the organization next year in their city of the Games, postponed by one year - a first in peacetime - due to the new coronavirus pandemic.

According to a poll published Monday, June 29, 51.7% of those who responded to this survey conducted by two Japanese media said they hoped that the Olympics would either be postponed again or canceled, while 46.3% said they hoped that they will take place in 2021. More specifically, 27.7% would like a pure and simple cancellation and 24.0% a second postponement, 31.1% hope for Games of a reduced magnitude and 15.2% of the full Olympics and whole. 

The governor of the Japanese capital, Yuriko Koike, the first woman to hold the post of governor-mayor of Tokyo, however promises to "  mobilize 120%  " so that the event can take place. On August 21, 2016, for the closing of the Rio Olympics, Yuriko Koike brandished the Olympic flag as a witness. She had just been elected. The moment was festive.

Towards a simplification of the Tokyo Games 

"  Simplification and cost reduction  " are the key words in addition to security, now explains Ms. Koike, candidate for re-election on July 5. But Yuriko Koike rejects the scenario of a cancellation of the Tokyo Games in 2021.

“  We will organize Games in a safe and serene environment for athletes and spectators from abroad, as well as for the people of Tokyo. The methods to achieve this goal, whether PCR tests or contact tracing, will be decided soon,  "she explained during an interview with AFP, a few days after announcing her candidacy for a second term, against the backdrop of an economic recession which is also affecting the capital of Japan.

In mid-April the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted for Japan a 5.2% fall in GDP over the whole year, expecting the economy to recover from the second half.

In late April, the Japanese parliament adopted an extraordinary budget of 25.7 trillion yen, nearly 222 billion euros, to deal with the coronavirus crisis. A plan which also aims to protect jobs, avoid the bankruptcy of small and medium-sized enterprises, support the industry as well as certain sectors of activity particularly affected by the crisis, such as tourism, deprived of the Tokyo Olympics this summer.

The IOC and Japanese organizers have agreed in recent weeks to simplify the Tokyo Games. The measures are expected to be made public within the next two months.

Newsletter Receive all international news directly in your mailbox

Follow all international news by downloading the RFI application

• Sports
• OJ 2020
• Japan

On the same subject

Tokyo Games canceled if not held on dates scheduled for 2021