Tokyo’s outspoken governor, Naoki Inose, who heads the city’s bid for the 2020 Olympics, apologized on Tuesday for “inappropriate” comments he made about rival candidate Istanbul and Islamic countries in general.
The remarks, made in a recent New York Times interview, prompted the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to investigate the matter. Turkey’s sports minister said they were “unfair and disheartening” and “did not comply with the spirit of the values of the Olympic Movement”.
“Islamic countries, the only thing they share in common is Allah and they are fighting with each other, and they have classes,” Inose, who was elected Tokyo governor last year, had said in the interview.
“For the athletes, where will be the best place to be? Well, compare the two countries – where do they have yet to build infrastructure, very sophisticated facilities?” he said.
Tokyo is competing with Istanbul and Madrid to hold the Olympics for a second time after becoming the first Asian city to host the multi-sport event in 1964. Istanbul is bidding for a fifth time after its previous campaigns were unsuccessful.
“I said that Islamic countries fight, it was an inappropriate remark and I want to correct it,” Inose told reporters at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building on Tuesday.
He accepted that the New York Times story was correct, adding that he would not seek a correction from the paper.
“I apologize. My remarks caused misunderstandings among people from Muslim countries, so I would like to unequivocally apologize.”
Inose’s remarks sparked concern in Tokyo that it might affect the Japanese capital’s bid for the Games as IOC rules ban candidates from making comments against fellow competitors.