POSTED: September 23rd 2008
InDepth
Tokyo learns Canadian lesson
Special Correspondent / Sports Features Communications
TOKYO: Tokyo bid leaders together with the Japan Olympic Academy have reached out to the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Olympic Academy to gather knowledge to promote Olympic education in Japan.
They hosted a lecture on September 20 by Dr Gene Sutton, executive board m member of the Canadian Olympic Committee and head of the Canadian Olympic Academy, about the plans and activities in the 2010 host country for the Vancouver Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.
Sutton was welcomed by Chiharu Igaya, vice-president of the International Olympic Committee, president of the Japan Olympic Academy, together with Tokyo 2016 bid leaders and representatives from the Tokyo metropolitan government.
Igaya said: “Tokyo 2016 is delighted to exchange views on Olympic education with specialists such as Dr Sutton. We are committed to our Olympic education program and will leverage Japan’s outstanding resources in this field to educate children and adults alike about Olympism.”
Topics covered included sharing information on Canadian Olympic education, past achievements, and projects being prepared by the Canadian Academy in conjunction with the upcoming Games.
Representatives of the Tokyo metropolitan government also made a presentation on the bid’s plans for Olympic education for both the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics.
Sutton said: “I am very impressed with the plans of the city of Tokyo for Olympic education and happy to see that they are not waiting for next year’s host city selection to implement them.
“Japan is already known for its strong involvement in the Olympic Movement; further expanding its already outstanding Olympic education is only going to strengthen these ties. I wish the best of luck to Tokyo 2016.”
The Japan Olympic Academy recently collaborated with Tokyo 2016 to develop Olympic textbooks introduced in schools on September 18. Next year the Olympic education network will be rolled out to include elementary, middle and senior high schools nationwide.
Igaya added: “We are encouraging athletes to assist us in the program because they are great role models for children. In this regard, we were very pleased that Yuki Ota, the Japanese fencing champion who won a silver medal in Beijing, helped out with the initial distribution of our Olympic text books.”
The Tokyo bid team will be attending the sixth IOC World Forum on Sport, Education and Culture in Busan, South Korea from September 25 to 27 to gain insight to include in the Tokyo 2016 Candidate City File.
Keywords · Gene Sutton · Tokyo 2016 · Vancouver 2010 · Chiharu Igaya · Japan Olympic Academy · Canadian Olympic Committee · Canadian Olympic Academy
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