Tokyo will bid for the 2020 Olympics, hoping to show the world how it has recovered nine years after the devastation caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Japanese Olympic Committee president Tsunekazu Takeda confirmed the Japanese capital’s candidacy on Saturday at a ceremony celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Japanese Olympic Committee.
“Today, Japan is recovering from the tsunami and earthquake and we want to have the 2020 Olympics as a symbol of the recovery,” said the official.
Tokyo, which lost out to Rio de Janeiro in the race to host the 2016 Olympics, was not discouraged by the South Korean city of Pyeongchang winning the right to host the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Last week, Pyeongchang beat European rivals Munich and Annecy, France, after narrow defeats for the 2010 and 2014 Games.
International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge, who attended Saturday’s ceremony, said on Thursday the IOC has no formal opposition to hosting successive games on the same continent.
Rome and Madrid have officially declared bids for 2020 and Istanbul is expected to do so as well.
The IOC will select the 2020 host city in 2013.
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