Tokyo marks three years to Olympics as issues persist
Japan marked three years in the countdown to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Monday with much celebration and fanfare.
Japan marked three years in the countdown to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Monday with celebration and fanfare but some issues such as soaring costs continue to be a problem for organizers of the event.
Tokyo Games will be something special
Japanese celebrities and athletes dressed in bright kimonos gathered at the launch of a remake of a popular 1964 Tokyo Olympic song as organizers promised to turn the 2020 Games into the biggest 'natsu matsuri' (summer festival) ever.
Other events were held across Japan, including a 1000 kilometre run and cycling relay from northern Aomori prefecture to Tokyo, taking in areas hit by the deadly 2011 tsunami and featuring 2000 Sydney Olympic marathon champion Naoko Takahashi at the start. A surfing exhibition by pros also took place at the Tsurigasaki beach venue in Chiba, on the outskirts of Tokyo, where the sport will make its Olympic debut in 2020. Elsewhere, Toyota are developing a flying car, the Skydrive, which will carry the Olympic torch into the stadium and light the cauldron during the opening ceremony.
Keeping 2020 Olympic costs down
Japanese organizers however have plenty of work to do. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) last month praised local organizers for slashing costs, fearful that ballooning budgets could see future bids dry up. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike last year ordered a review of the budget that recommended revised plans to reduce costs projected to rise to more than $25 billion - four times the initial estimates when Tokyo won the 2020 hosting rights.
Local organizers have since slashed costs to around $13 billion but have otherwise struggled to inspire confidence after a series of setbacks. They bungled the rollout of the centrepiece Olympic stadium two years ago when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ripped up the blueprints amid public anger over its price tag. More embarrassment followed when the original Games logo was scrapped following allegations of plagiarism. A new one has since been unveiled.
