奥运会官员计划把马拉松从东京转移到札幌

Olympic Officials Aim to Move Marathon from Tokyo to Cooler Sapporo

Fans of long-distance racing¹ might not be able to see the marathon event next year at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Instead, they might have to travel to Sapporo on Hokaido Island -- 832 kilometers away.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Wednesday released its proposal to move the marathon and long-distance race walking events to Sapporo. The change was announced quickly -- with little discussion with local organizers or government officials.

Sapporo officials are excited by the proposal to move next year’s events to the northern Japanese city.

“We take this as an honor,” Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto said.

That was not the case in Tokyo, however. It seemed to catch officials there by surprise.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike was not happy on Thursday.

“We are very surprised to learn of this sudden change of direction,” she said. She noted² the effort that municipal governments had made to organize the race.

Koike, however, did not disagree with the IOC’s reasoning for the change. The Olympic Committee noted Tokyo’s especially hot weather and athlete’s safety.

The IOC wrote: “In Sapporo, temperatures during the Games period are as much as five to six degrees centigrade cooler during the day than in Tokyo.”

The hope is that the cooler temperatures will reduce “stress” on the runners.

Koike said, “Of course, the athletes-first approach is extremely important.”

Sapporo is not new to the Olympics. It hosted the 1972 Winter Olympic Games. The city also has expressed interest in holding the 2030 Winter Games.

This week’s unexpected move could be a first step.

“I think this could pave the way for us,” Sapporo’s mayor said.

Why officials proposed the change

Olympic officials have acted because of results from the recent World Track and Field championships, held last month in Doha, Qatar.

In the women’s marathon event, 28 of 68 competitors who started the race failed to finish. In the men’s race, 18 of 73 failed to complete the course. This happened even with the races being held at midnight, when the weather was cooler. The temperature was still 38 degrees C at the time, however.

Ethiopian distance-running great Haile Gebrselassie said athletes “could have died” in the women’s race.

The marathons in Tokyo were to start at 6 in the morning to ease the heat effect on runners. The men’s 50-kilometer race walk final was expected to start at 5:30 in the morning.

Tokyo governor Koike said she wants the IOC to explain the decision “to all of the games’ stakeholders, including the citizens of Tokyo.”

A report released last year by the national government’s Board of Audit³ said Japan is likely to spend $25 billion to prepare for the games. Much of the total is public money, except for the $5.6 billion in the privately⁴ funded operating budget.

However, organizers dispute that amount. They say it is about $12 billion. There is a heated debate over which costs are directly related to the Olympics and which ones are not.

Tokyo estimated a total cost of about $7.5 billion when it won the right to hold the games in 2013.

I’m Mario Ritter, Jr.

Words in This Story

pave the way –idiom to make it easier for something to happen

municipal –adj. related to the government of a city or town

centigrade –adj. a scale that goes from 0 to 100; the same as Celsius⁵

stakeholder –n. a person or business that has invested money in something

1 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 audit   

v.审计；查帐；核对；旁听

参考例句：

• Each year they audit our accounts and certify them as being true and fair.他们每年对我们进行账务审核，以确保其真实无误。
• As usual,the yearly audit will take place in December.跟往常一样，年度审计将在十二月份进行。

4 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

5 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。