Pyeongchang Olympics could include events in Japan

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) proposed to Korea, which will host the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics, and Japan, which will host the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, to take some events out of their host city.

If Olympic Agenda 2020 is passed in the session on Monday and Tuesday, Korea and Japan could take some events out of their city to cut costs and for the use of stadiums after the Olympic Games, IOC President Thomas Bach said on Sunday after the IOC session in Monte Carlo, Monaco, adding that the IOC plans to send staff to Korea and Japan on January and February next year for a due diligence.

Reuters and Associated Press said that the IOC is considering hosting some of sled events including bobsleigh and skeleton in Nagano, Japan, which hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics.

Cho Yang-ho, head of the Pyeongchang 2018 Organizing Committee who is visiting Monaco, said that Bach`s reform program will offer a lot of opportunities to host cities and the committee will consult with the IOC on the realignment of stadiums.

Korean organizers and government officials resisted the IOC’s push, saying, “We have started the construction of six new stadiums including a sled stadium in the Alpensia Resort. Considering the public sentiment, it is not easy to host some events in other country.”