Fans of long-distance racing may not be capable of seeing the marathon occasion next year at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Instead, they might journey to Sapporo on Hokkaido Island — 832 kilometers away. On Wednesday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) released its proposal to move the marathon and long-distance race walking activities to Sapporo. The change became announced fast — with little discussion with nearby organizers or authorities officials. Sapporo officers are excited by way of the inspiration to transport the next 12 months’ events to the northern Japanese city. “We take this as an honor,” Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto stated.
That becomes now not the case in Tokyo, however. It regarded to trap officials there with the aid of marvel. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike turned into now not glad on Thursday. “We are amazed to examine this sudden trade of direction,” she said. She referred to the effort that municipal governments had made to arrange the race. Koike, however, did no longer disagree with the IOC’s reasoning for the alternate. The Olympic Committee referred to Tokyo’s hot weather and athlete protection. The IOC wrote: “In Sapporo, temperatures throughout the Games period are as lots as five to six stages centigrade cooler for the duration of the day than in Tokyo.”
The wish is that the cooler temperatures will reduce “pressure” on the runners. Koike said, “Of route, the athletes-first method is extremely vital.” Sapporo isn’t always new to the Olympics. It hosted the 1972 Winter Olympic Games. The city also has expressed a hobby in retaining the 2030 Winter Games. This week’s surprising might be the first step. “I assume this can pave the way for us,” Sapporo’s mayor said.
Why officers proposed the alternate
Olympic officials have acted due to consequences from the current World Track and Field Championships, held last month in Doha, Qatar. Mexico’s Cecilia Perez, middle, collapses after competing in a girls’ triathlon take a look at an occasion at Odaiba Marine Park, a venue for marathon swimming and triathlon at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019, in Tokyo. Olympic officials say they’ve been concerned about approximately high temperatures in Tokyo at some point in the Games.
In the women’s marathon event, 28 of 68 competition which started the race failed to finish. In the guys’ race, 18 of 73 failed to complete the course. This happened even with the races being held in the dark while the climate was cooler. The temperature turned into nevertheless 38 stages C at the time, however. Ethiopian distance-jogging tremendous Haile Gebrselassie stated athletes “could have died” in the girls’ race.
The marathons in Tokyo have been to begin at 6 within the morning to ease the warmth impact on runners. The guys’ 50-kilometer race walk very last become anticipated to start at 5:30 in the morning. Tokyo governor Koike stated she wants the IOC to explain the choice “to all the video games’ stakeholders, along with the residents of Tokyo.”
A record released closing year through the countrywide authorities’ Board of Audit said Japan would likely spend $25 billion to put together for the games. Much of the whole is public cash, besides the $5.6 billion in the privately funded operating price range. However, organizers dispute that quantity. They say it is about $12 billion. There is a heated debate over which charges are immediately related to the Olympics, and which of them aren’t. Tokyo anticipated a total value of about $7.Five billion whilst it received the right to maintain the games in 2013.
