Tokyo's new National Stadium for the 2020 Olympics "could be scaled down" by 70,000 square meters, or approximately 25%, according to KYODO. The Japan Sport Council, which runs the venue, "held a meeting with experts from various fields to review the original plan, which has come under fire over the design and bloated budget for the mega-stadium to replace the one built for Tokyo's last Games" in '64. Capacity will remain at 80,000. The retractable roof, which was being reconsidered, "is also expected to stay after it was deemed necessary to accommodate nonsporting events by a number of people at the meeting, including Japanese Olympic Committee President Tsunekazu Takeda." The JSC said that "the planned roof alone is expected to cost" anywhere from 10B yen ($99M) to 15B yen ($149M) (KYODO, 11/26). The AFP reported the JSC announced that "it would scale back the floor space" to 220,000 square meters. That would cut construction costs to about 180B yen ($1.8B), down from 300B yen "for the bigger building." Officials on Tuesday "did not release a revised cost estimate." The reportedly slimmed-down cost is still nearly 40% "above the government's initial estimates for a new stadium" (AFP, 11/26).
