Olympic Games
Tokyo 2020 reveals new budget
The spending remains unchanged at $12.6 billion; however, more work will be needed.
Tokyo 2020 organizers revealed the latest version of the Summer Olympics’ budget on Friday, keeping their estimate unchanged at 1.35 trillion yen ($12.6 billion).
Organizers have been working to cut expenses since a study warned they could balloon to four times estimates made during the bidding process, and with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wanting Tokyo to set a good example for future host cities.
The organizers have managed to reduce the budget $1.4 billion from the $14 billion outlay unveiled two years ago.
“There is still a lot of work to be done to control expenditure,” Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto said in a statement.
“But with the cooperation of the IOC, Tokyo 2020 will continue to make best efforts to maximize revenues, contain costs and keep its budget within 600 billion yen ($5.6 billion),” he said, referring to the organizing committee’s portion of the overall budget.
Olympic spending dispute
Friday’s budget announcement came after a dispute over what exactly counts as Olympic spending.
A report from government auditors was published in October, revealing that a budget-busting 800 billion yen had been allocated by government ministries and agencies.
The report argued that government has allocated funds for 286 projects, ranging from the operation of weather satellites to subsidies for hydrogen stations for fuel-cell vehicles.
The Games’ organizers hit back saying that auditors were counting outlay that is not related with to the Olympics, unfairly inflating the price tag of the event.