Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe delivers his speech during a national rally to demand the return of Russian-held four islands floating off the northernmost main island of Hokkaido, in Tokyo, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014, Japan has designated Feb. 7 as “Northern Territories Day. Abe and his Chinese counterpart appear not to be bothered by the international ruckus over Russia’s law restricting gay rights. Unlike President Barack Obama, who pointedly declined to attend the Winter Olympics, the leaders of the world’s second and third largest economies — where gay rights are not a hot-button political issue — are going to Sochi. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)
SOCHI, Russia (AP) — Japanese organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics say they’re looking to bring women into the fold.
Tokyo has come under scrutiny for forming a mostly older, male-only leadership team. The committee is headed by 76-year-old Yoshiro Mori, a former Japanese prime minister.
Mori acknowledged the issue at a news conference Sunday in Sochi, saying, “we will take care to have female members as well as young people” when the executive board is expanded.
Mori initially declined to head the committee, citing his age, but reconsidered after no other suitable candidates from the business community volunteered.
Mori also was asked why he and other Tokyo leaders don’t speak English. He replied that he was a second grader when World War II ended and “English was considered the enemy’s language.”
