Tokyo Olympics organizing committee president Yoshiro Mori said on Friday he will resign after his sexist remarks sparked an international uproar.
His resignation dealt another blow to the delayed Games, which have been threatened by a resurgence of the coronavirus.
Speaking at a news conference in Tokyo, Mori offered an apology because his "inappropriate remarks caused confusion."
Olympic Minister Seiko Hashimoto is reportedly a candidate to succeed the 83-year-old former prime minister though organizers were first considering appointing former Japan Football Association president Saburo Kawabuchi, another octogenarian male, as a successor, local media reported.
Kawabuchi declined to be considered, organizing committee chief executive Toshiro Muto told a news conference.
Organizers will set up a committee to consider a successor to Mori, Muto said.
Mori told a Japan Olympic Committee (JOC) meeting last week that women talk too much at meetings of boards of directors.
"Board of directors meetings with many women take more time," he said, referring to the JOC’s plan to raise the percentage of women on its board of directors to 40 per cent. Currently only five of its 24 members are women.
"Women are competitive. When one person raises a hand to speak, others apparently feel compelled to speak up as well. So, everyone speaks," he said.
Mori later retracted the remarks and offered an apology, but refused to resign while pressure mounted on him to quit.
No Japanese political leaders including Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga urged him to step down.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said that it "takes note" of Mori’s resignation.
"The IOC fully respects President Mori's decision to step down and understands his reasons for doing so," IOC president Thomas Bach said in a statement, thanking Mori for his "outstanding contribution" to organizing the Games.
"The IOC will continue working hand-in-hand with his successor to deliver safe and secure Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 in 2021," Bach said.
The IOC first said the case was “closed” following Mori’s apology last week, however, the body said on Tuesday his remarks were "absolutely inappropriate and in contradiction to the IOC's commitments and the reforms of its Olympic Agenda 2020."
Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota Motor, one of the Games' major sponsors, said on Wednesday "It is truly regrettable that (Mori's comments) are different from the values that Toyota has cherished."
Mori was one of the most unpopular prime ministers in modern Japan. He was known for a string of gaffes and low approval ratings.
Mori’s departure comes at a time when up to 80 per cent of the Japanese public believe the Games will be postponed again or cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the latest surveys.
Since early January, Japan has had a coronavirus state of emergency in place in 10 prefectures, including Tokyo and its surrounding regions, as the country has been struggling to curb a resurgence of coronavirus infections. It is due to expire on March 7.
Source: DPA
