Seiko Hashimoto quits Olympic minister role to lead Tokyo Organising Committee

Seiko Hashimoto was appointed the new president of the Tokyo Organising Committee after stepping down as Olympic minister Feb. 18, replacing Yoshiro Mori after his sexist remarks led to his resignation just five months before the games are set to begin. Tamayo Marukawa, a ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker in the Upper House took the role just vacated by Hashimoto, becoming Olympic minister for her second time. Hashimoto stepped down from her ministerial post due to restrictions that prevent a minister from simultaneously serving as president of a public entity. “I have supported and have been supported by the organizing committee both as an athlete and a minister, and I will continue to do so but this time in my capacity as president of the Tokyo Organising Committee,” Hashimoto said during an executive board meeting Feb. 18. Hashimoto, who has competed in seven Olympics, won the bronze medal for speed skating at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France. (The Japan Times) This article was provided by The Japan Times Alpha.