SENDAI, Japan (AP) — The head of the Japanese Olympic Committee says Tokyo’s bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics would include regions hardest hit by the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crises.
JOC chief Tsunekazu Takeda met with government officials from Japan’s northeastern region on Saturday and told them he wants the 2020 Games in Tokyo to stand as a “symbol of recovery.”
Takeda said Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima — the three areas hardest hit by the disaster — could host events such as soccer if Tokyo wins the right to host the Olympics.
National Olympic committees have until Sept. 1 to submit bids for the 2020 Games. Tokyo, which hosted the 1964 Olympics, has yet to formally announce a bid but is expected to do so.
