The news is surprising, especially after the last episode: the Japanese city of Sapporo has decided to abandon its plan to organize the Winter Games in 2030. It is withdrawing from the race, after having withdrawn from it since last year to mark a long break. End of the story.
The news is not yet official. But several Japanese media, including NHK and the agency Kyodo News, announce it as almost certain. They quote “ multiple sources » consistent, trustworthy because they are internal to the project for the capital of Hokkaido Prefecture.
Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto is scheduled to meet Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) president, former judoka Yasuhiro Yamashita, next week in Tokyo. Scheduled for Wednesday October 11, the meeting is supposed to bury the candidacy and make official the abandonment of the race.
According to the same sources, Sapporo's abandonment was made inevitable by the difficulties of the project leaders, led by Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto, in obtaining massive support from the population. Launched like a shell at the start of the campaign, the Japanese candidacy was cut short by the revelations of a corruption scandal at the Tokyo 2020 Games. Last December, it was put on pause. A (too) long parenthesis which would have prevented its leaders from promoting it to residents.
While not surprising in substance, Sapporo's decision raises questions about the form. It comes only a few days after the presentation to the media of a new “ management plan » of an Olympic candidacy, presumed to be less opaque, with an organizing committee respecting gender parity. Obviously, it did not convince the independent experts invited to analyze its relevance.
Sapporo withdraws, therefore. But the city is not giving up on hosting the Winter Games for the second time, after having hosted the event in 1972. Japanese media suggest that the mayor, Katsuhiro Akimoto, should discuss the possibility next week with Yasuhiro Yamashita to postpone its efforts to the 2034 edition.
The president of the JOC has suggested it several times in recent months: securing the organization of the Games in 2030 seems today “ quite difficult ", but Japan retains all its chances for the following editions. Yasuhiro Yamashita even invited applicant cities or regions to come forward to propose a medium or long term project.
With the withdrawal of Sapporo, and the expressed desire of Salt Lake City to obtain the Games in 2034 instead, the race is becoming more and more a European affair. Sweden, Switzerland and France presented themselves, in that order, on the starting line. Their chances of victory have just increased again in recent hours. But it remains difficult, less than a year before the final decision, announced for the IOC session next July in Paris, to identify a favorite.
