Tokyo 2020 Olympic organizers on Wednesday "gave the green light for disaster-affected Fukushima Prefecture to host baseball and softball games," according to Andrew McKirdy of the JAPAN TIMES. Three cities -- Fukushima, Koriyama and Iwaki -- are "under consideration to stage part of the competition as the two sports return to the Olympic program after an absence of 12 years." World Baseball Softball Confederation President Riccardo Fraccari will "visit Japan next week to inspect the venues." The IOC will "make the final decision" when it holds its exec board meeting from Dec. 6-8. Tokyo 2020 exec board member Toshiaki Endo said, "We want to emphasize this as a 'recovery games' and we want to work together with everyone to move it forward." The Yomiuri Giants professional baseball team "occasionally hosts Nippon Professional Baseball games at all three venues." Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium and Iwaki Green Stadium "both have capacities of 30,000, while the older Koriyama Kaiseizan Baseball Stadium holds 18,200" (JAPAN TIMES, 11/9). KYODO reported IOC President Thomas Bach "got the ball rolling" for Fukushima's involvement when he mentioned last month about possibly opening the baseball-softball competition in Fukushima Prefecture as "a show of support to aid the recovery from the quake-tsunami disaster that rocked the eastern coastline of Japan." Fukushima Governor Masao Uchibori said that the city will "also lobby to organize other Olympic events." He said, "Along with the baseball and softball, we have also asked about the torch relay as well as training camps for the soccer teams. We want to be involved in various events, which will hopefully help add to the atmosphere of the Olympics" (KYODO, 11/9).
RECYCLED MEDALS: The AFP reported organizers announced that medals for the Tokyo Olympics will be made from old smartphones and other electronic products, "as they look to give the Games an environmentally friendly hue." Tokyo 2020 spokesperson Hikariko Ono said, "Medals made with recycled metals from discarded mobile phones and other gadgets can be a symbol of sustainability and public participation." She added that details, such as whether some or all of the medals will use recycled metals, "will be decided later" (AFP, 11/9).
