Sapporo mayor says Tokyo bid-rigging hurt its Olympic bid
By STEPHEN WADE
AP Sports Writer
TOKYO (AP) — Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto and the Japanese Olympic Committee say they will “discontinue for some time” their effort to land the 2030 Winter Games because of damage done by the Tokyo Olympic bid-rigging scandal. Akimoto suggested to a news conference that the bid was not being scrapped, just being paused. The Sapporo bid has been battered by a corruption scandal surrounding the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Sapporo had been considered the favorite for 2030, with Salt Lake City seen as the leader to land 2034. Akimoto acknowledged the scandal had sullied the bid.