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Washington Post
a day ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Veteran politician Seiko Hashimoto elected first female president of the Japanese Olympic Committee
TOKYO — Seiko Hashimoto has been elected president of the Japanese Olympic Committee, becoming the first woman to head the body. She is a former Olympian and was elected late Thursday to replace Yasuhiro Yamashita, who served three terms. Hashimoto competed in cycling in three Summer Olympics (1988, 1992 and 1996), and in speedskating in four Winter Olympics (1984, 1988, 1992 and 1994). She won a bronze medal at the 1992 Albertville Games in speedskating. Hashimoto has served as a government minister for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and is currently a member of the upper house of the Japanese parliament. She also was appointed president of the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee early in 2021. She replaced Yoshiro Mori, a former Japanese prime minister who was forced to resign as president of the committee after making sexist comments about women. Japanese media reported that she had met recently with outgoing International Olympic President Thomas Bach and had been encouraged to have Japan bid for another Olympics. 'I believe the JOC's mission is to bid again to host the Olympics and Paralympics,' she was quoted as saying by Japanese news agency Kyodo. The Tokyo Olympics were held in 2021 after being delayed a year by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the delay, the Tokyo Games were plagued by rising costs and eventually by a bid-rigging scandal that forced Japan to drop a potential bid by the northern city of Sapporo for the 2030 Winter Olympics. Hashimoto is sure to face close scrutiny. The Asahi Shimbun newspaper, on its English-language website, reported she addressed the question of a political funding scandal linked to the ruling LDP party. 'I would not have run if there had been any suspicion over my actions,' the newspaper reported her saying. ___ AP Olympics:
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Veteran politician Seiko Hashimoto elected first female president of the Japanese Olympic Committee
TOKYO (AP) — Seiko Hashimoto has been elected president of the Japanese Olympic Committee, becoming the first woman to head the body. She is a former Olympian and was elected late Thursday to replace Yasuhiro Yamashita, who served three terms. Hashimoto competed in cycling in three Summer Olympics (1988, 1992 and 1996), and in speedskating in four Winter Olympics (1984, 1988, 1992 and 1994). She won a bronze medal at the 1992 Albertville Games in speedskating. Hashimoto has served as a government minister for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and is currently a member of the upper house of the Japanese parliament. She also was appointed president of the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee early in 2021. She replaced Yoshiro Mori, a former Japanese prime minister who was forced to resign as president of the committee after making sexist comments about women. Japanese media reported that she had met recently with outgoing International Olympic President Thomas Bach and had been encouraged to have Japan bid for another Olympics. 'I believe the JOC's mission is to bid again to host the Olympics and Paralympics,' she was quoted as saying by Japanese news agency Kyodo. The Tokyo Olympics were held in 2021 after being delayed a year by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the delay, the Tokyo Games were plagued by rising costs and eventually by a bid-rigging scandal that forced Japan to drop a potential bid by the northern city of Sapporo for the 2030 Winter Olympics. Hashimoto is sure to face close scrutiny. The Asahi Shimbun newspaper, on its English-language website, reported she addressed the question of a political funding scandal linked to the ruling LDP party. 'I would not have run if there had been any suspicion over my actions,' the newspaper reported her saying. ___ AP Olympics:
Associated Press
a day ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Veteran politician Seiko Hashimoto elected first female president of the Japanese Olympic Committee
TOKYO (AP) — Seiko Hashimoto has been elected president of the Japanese Olympic Committee, becoming the first woman to head the body. She is a former Olympian and was elected late Thursday to replace Yasuhiro Yamashita, who served three terms. Hashimoto competed in cycling in three Summer Olympics (1988, 1992 and 1996), and in speedskating in four Winter Olympics (1984, 1988, 1992 and 1994). She won a bronze medal at the 1992 Albertville Games in speedskating. Hashimoto has served as a government minister for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and is currently a member of the upper house of the Japanese parliament. She also was appointed president of the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee early in 2021. She replaced Yoshiro Mori, a former Japanese prime minister who was forced to resign as president of the committee after making sexist comments about women. Japanese media reported that she had met recently with outgoing International Olympic President Thomas Bach and had been encouraged to have Japan bid for another Olympics. 'I believe the JOC's mission is to bid again to host the Olympics and Paralympics,' she was quoted as saying by Japanese news agency Kyodo. The Tokyo Olympics were held in 2021 after being delayed a year by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the delay, the Tokyo Games were plagued by rising costs and eventually by a bid-rigging scandal that forced Japan to drop a potential bid by the northern city of Sapporo for the 2030 Winter Olympics. Hashimoto is sure to face close scrutiny. The Asahi Shimbun newspaper, on its English-language website, reported she addressed the question of a political funding scandal linked to the ruling LDP party. 'I would not have run if there had been any suspicion over my actions,' the newspaper reported her saying. ___ AP Olympics:
Japan Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Kirsty Coventry says IOC will take lead regarding gender eligibility in sports
The International Olympic Committee will spearhead discussions on gender eligibility criteria in sports, its new president Kirsty Coventry said on Thursday, four years after the ruling body urged federations to handle the issue independently. Coventry, who officially took over the presidency from Thomas Bach this week following Monday's ceremony in Lausanne as the first woman and first African to hold the position, said she now wanted the IOC to "protect the female category." She announced the formation of a working group to lead these discussions and another to review the election process for future Olympic host cities. The IOC has long refused to apply any universal rule on transgender participation for the Olympics, instructing international federations in 2021 to come up with their own guidelines. "We're going to actually set up a working group made up of experts and international federations," Coventry told a news conference following the first executive board meeting of her presidency. She also held a two-day workshop for IOC members this week to discuss key issues with them. "It was agreed by the members that the IOC should take a leading role in this and that we should be the ones to bring together the experts, bring together the international federations and ensure that we find consensus," Coventry said. "We understand that there will be differences depending on the sports. We should make the effort to place emphasis on the protection of the female category and that we should ensure that this is done in consensus with all the stakeholders." Transgender athletes are currently eligible to compete at the Olympics. Some international federations have rules in place, but others have not yet reached that stage. U.S. President Donald Trump has banned transgender athletes from competing in sports in schools in the United States, which civil rights groups say infringes on the rights of transgender people. Trump has said he would not allow transgender athletes to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Coventry said IOC members also wanted to be more involved in the selection process for future Olympic host cities. Under her predecessor, the IOC executive board presented one preferred candidate to IOC members, who then rubber-stamped that choice. "There was overwhelming support from the IOC members for a pause to be done, and a review of the future host election process," Coventry said. "Members want to be engaged more in the process, and secondly there was a very big discussion in and around when should the next host be awarded." The next Summer Olympics will be held in Los Angeles in 2028, followed by Brisbane in 2032. The IOC has reported "double-digit" interest for the 2036 Games from countries including India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Germany, Indonesia and Turkey. No date for a decision on those Games has been set. The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place in Italy's Milano Cortina, with the French Alps hosting the 2030 edition and Salt Lake City in the U.S. organizing the 2034 Winter Games.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
IOC's Coventry pauses 2036 Olympics hosting contest, does that open door for Hong Kong bid?
New IOC president Kirsty Coventry has paused the fast tracking of a preferred bidder for the 2036 Olympics, potentially opening the door to a bid from Hong Kong. Advertisement While India had been considered the front runner to win hosting rights, Coventry's decision on Thursday has seemingly stalled that momentum in a race that also includes the likes of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Turkey. China has yet to officially express an interest in hosting a third Olympics, after staging the Summer Games in 2008 and the Winter version in 2022, but a working group in Hong Kong has been pushing hard to bring it to the Greater Bay Area. The group, which is made up of local business and sporting officials, has already brought their plan to the government and hope to have it mentioned as part of the Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu's Policy Address later this year. In a series of opinion pieces, the group has outlined the benefits a Games would bring, and the minimal cost involved if co-hosted with Shenzhen and Guangdong. 01:24 Two-time Olympics champion freestyle skier Eileen Gu teases 2026 Winter Olympics Two-time Olympics champion freestyle skier Eileen Gu teases 2026 Winter Olympics Coventry paused the signature policy of her predecessor and mentor Thomas Bach, in a concession to International Olympic Committee members who have wanted more say in decisions under new leadership.
