Society

2020 Olympic Stadium won't be multi-purpose venue

Jul 27 (NHK) - The main venue for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics will likely be used exclusively for team ball sports after the 2020 Games.

The opening and closing ceremonies of the Games, as well as sporting events, including track and field and soccer, are to take place in the new National Stadium, currently under construction in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward.

A working group of state officials and the Japan Sport Council have been discussing how to operate and manage the stadium after the Games.

The main focus of the talks has been whether to use the stadium for track and field events, or for team ball sports, including soccer.

The group on Wednesday exchanged its views with officials of the Japan Association of Athletics Federations. Members spoke on the difficulty of setting up a subtrack near the stadium that would meet international standards.

They also said they prefer making the stadium a venue for ball sports, saying it is possible to build spectator-friendly seats on top of the running track. They reasoned that this, in turn, will generate more revenue to cover future maintenance costs.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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