Tamayo Marukawa to succeed Hashimoto as Japan's Olympic minister: NHK

14:44, February 18, 2021

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  Japan's Olympics minister Hashimoto top candidate to replace Mori as Tokyo 2020 president

  TOKYO, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Japans Olympics minister Hashimoto Seiko has been named the top candidate to become the new president of the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee, the state broadcaster NHK said here on Wednesday.Japans Olympics minister Hashimoto Seiko (Photo: Xinhua)NHK said that the eight-member selection committee for the new president has pegged the minister for the Tokyo Games chief to replace Yoshiro Mori, who resigned last week over sexist comments about women.It said that the panel will ask Hashimotos personal opinion on whether to take the position.The 56-year-old Hashimoto, who competed in four Winter Olympics as a speed skater and three Summer Olympics as a track cyclist, has served as the Olympics minister since September 11, 2019.

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  Japan approves first vaccine with Olympics in sight

  File photoJapan on Sunday approved its first coronavirus vaccine, clearing the way for mass inoculations as the nation prepares to host the postponed 2020 Olympics."The health minister today gave a special approval to the Pfizer vaccine," the prime ministers office said in a tweet.Japan is now expected to put the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in the arms of 10,000 to 20,000 medical workers from as early as Wednesday, before making it and other coronavirus vaccines available for more medical workers and the elderly from April.The government is yet to outline the exact rollout schedule for the rest of its population of 126 million people.Olympics officials have insisted that the Tokyo Games will take place even though Covid-19 continues to affect the entire world.Athletes and other participants will be encouraged, but not obliged, to be vaccinated to take part.Japan is now trying to secure enough special syringes that can extract the full six doses from each vial of the Pfizer vaccine.More commonly used syringes can only draw five doses.

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  Seven-time Olympian Seiko Hashimoto tipped as next Tokyo 2020 chief

  In this file photo taken on September 17, 2020 Japans Minister for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games Seiko Hashimoto delivers a speech during a press conference at the Prime Ministers office in Tokyo. (Photo: AFP)Seiko Hashimoto, Japans Olympics minister, has been widely tipped to succeed Yoshiro Mori as the new president of the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee, according to several Japanese media outlets.The committee is scrambling to replace the scandal-tainted Mori, who was forced to resign last week after claiming that women "talk too much" and "get competitive" with each other in meetings. His sexist remarks have incurred the wrath of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who posted a strongly worded statement, declaring that Moris behavior was "absolutely inappropriate and in contradiction to the IOCs commitments and the reforms of its Olympic agenda 2020."In the wake of the controversy, a panel was set up to choose Moris successor. Kyodo News agency revealed that Fujio Mitarai, honorary president of Tokyo 2020 and chief executive officer of Canon Inc., was appointed the head of the selection committee, which consisted of equal numbers of women and men.Yoshiro Mori (L) chats with Seiko Hashimoto prior to a three-party meeting in Tokyo, Japan, December 4, 2020. (Photo: CFP)Public broadcaster NHK said the panel has decided to ask Hashimoto, a seven-time Olympian as a speed skater in the winter and track cyclist in the summer, to take on the position after the meeting behind closed doors.Kyodo pointed out that the 56-year-old has avoided comment on the nomination so far, calling it a "personal matter," but on Thursday, the agency added that Hashimoto "has shown readiness" to be the new head of Tokyo 2020.Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato announced earlier that he was aware of the speculation surrounding Hashimoto, but stressing that the committee is "an independent ...