Governor Attends a Four-Party Meeting to Discuss the Olympic and Paralympic Games

On Wednesday, December 21, Governor Koike attended a four-party meeting with representatives from the International Olympic Committe (IOC), the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, and the central government, to disucss the costs, the review of the venues, and other matters related to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Taking part with the governor at the meeting in Tokyo were Yoshiro Mori, president of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, and Tamayo Marukawa, the minister in charge of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. Joining by video conference were IOC vice-president, John Coates, from Sydney, Australia, and Christophe Dubi, IOC exectutive director of the Olympic Games, from Lausanne, Swizerland.

Regarding the volleyball venue, the governor announced that, based on Agenda 2020, and having held a review looking at costs, possible use of existing facilities, and other factors, it had been decided that there were a number of issues associated with using Yokohama Arena, and a decision had been made to go ahead with building a new arena in Ariake. On the construction of the Ariake Arena, the governor said that an area-wide approach to development would be taken. She said construction of the facility would be steadily progressed, and that more effective and lasting use would be achieved by taking into account the whole area, not just the venue itself, emphasizing investment rather than expenditure, and attracting greater private sector involvement. She noted that in the process of reviewing the three venues, cost savings of around 40 billion yen had been found, adding that it was not just a question of cutting costs, but that the sustainability and legacy of the Games were important factors to be taken into account. She said that the metropolitan government would make appropriate investments for the future, putting in place the environmental infrastructure for the use of renewable energy, including geothermal and solar power.

At the four-party meeting, approval was given to the construction of the Ariake Arena.