Photo/Illutration Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto, left, meets with reporters along with Keigo Iwata, chairman of the committee promoting Sapporo’s bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics, center, and Masahiko Harada, an Olympic ski jumping gold medalist. (Ichiro Matsuo)

The expansive bribery scandal that has emerged from the behind-the-scenes organizing of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games appears to be casting a shadow over Sapporo’s bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics.

Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto had planned to meet with Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee, on Sept. 13 at IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, to personally lobby the case for his city.

But city officials announced Sept. 5 that the meeting would not take place this month.

“The IOC is very sensitive about public opinion,” said a former high-ranking official of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee. “The decision to not meet with the Sapporo mayor is a message from the IOC that the city’s chances have become much more difficult.”

The sponsorship scandal that came to light in July has only widened in recent days. Haruyuki Takahashi, a former executive of the Tokyo organizing committee, was rearrested on Sept. 6 on a second allegation of accepting bribes in return for helping companies become Olympic sponsors.

Sapporo officials said no date could be finalized with the IOC about the meeting with Bach, which means the plan to visit IOC headquarters has been put on ice. 

Akimoto had planned to visit the IOC along with Yasuhiro Yamashita, president of the Japanese Olympic Committee.

But the clock is ticking, with a decision on the host city expected before the year-end.

Other cities that have expressed an interest in hosting the 2030 Winter Games include Salt Lake City and Vancouver.

Sapporo city officials said they would continue discussions with IOC officials.

Akimoto will still proceed with a planned visit to Munich between Sept. 14 and 17 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of forging sister city ties with the German city.

(This article was compiled from reports by Shuhei Nomura and Osamu Hiura.)

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