TOKYO – Japanese Olympic Committee President Tsunekazu Takeda announced Tuesday that he would step down at the end of his term in June, in the face of corruption allegations that have cast a shadow over the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. French prosecutors placed Takeda under formal investigation in December over suspicions that he paid a bribe to help secure Tokyo’s bid to host next year’s Summer Olympics. Takeda, who was president of the 2020 bid committee, told a Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) board meeting Tuesday that he would not seek reelection in June and would also resign from the International Olympic Committee. “What’s important is that his resignation alone will never clear the doubt over the Tokyo’s bid for the Games,” he wrote on his blog Tuesday morning before the expected announcement. Takeda also serves on Tokyo 2020’s executive committee, but it was unclear whether he would also be standing down from this role.

Source: National Post March 19, 2019 14:15 UTC