TOKYO/PARIS - A businessman who received millions of dollars for his work on Tokyo’s successful campaign to host the 2020 Olympics, which was postponed last week due to the coronavirus, said he played a key role in securing the support of a former Olympics powerbroker suspected by French prosecutors of taking bribes to help Japan’s bid.
“You don’t go empty-handed. That’s common sense,” Takahashi told Reuters, referring to the gifts he gave Diack. The Tokyo bid committee also paid $1.3 million to a little-known non-profit institute run by former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, a powerful figure in Japanese sports and the head of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee.
The French are also investigating Diack’s son, Papa Massata Diack, on suspicion that he received the bulk of the money paid to the Singaporean consultant, and passed money on to his father to secure votes for Tokyo. Diack’s son has also denied any wrongdoing and said via email that he would “deliver my version in courts!!!”
Mori and Takahashi were central to Tokyo’s bid to win the Olympics, a campaign that began in 2011 and became a national priority under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Mori has publicly recounted how he lobbied a key International Olympic Committee official ahead of the vote. Takeda’s lawyer said he did not instruct Takahashi to lobby Diack and was unaware of any gifts given by Takahashi to Diack. “Mr. Takeda has never approved such things,” the lawyer said.
A 2016 investigation into the payments made by the Tokyo bid committee, which was conducted by a third-party panel convened by the Japanese Olympic Committee , found no evidence of wrongdoing. The JOC probe was criticized by an outside group of legal and compliance experts for not being thorough enough. The report that resulted from the JOC probe did not examine payments to Takahashi or the Jigoro Kano Memorial International Sport Institute, the non-profit sports institute run by Mori.
Takahashi said he was paid through his company, Commons Inc, by the Tokyo bid committee for “wining and dining” people who could further Tokyo’s bid, and for marketing and other activities related to Tokyo’s Olympic campaign.
A seiko watch? If I were him I would have asked for a citizen at least
Other gifts included a PS2 and an iPod Nano.
'Lobbying'....thought this word was exclusively for Washington to use in stead of what it actually is....bribery.
Bribery?
Corruption is bad for society. He must face the law.
電通 dentsu 元専務に約9億円の資金とロイター Olympics
The world's second most corrupt organization is suspected of corruption?!
It’s always about money!
Longest. Headline. Ever.
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri Real word, capitalism win everywhere
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri STOP OLYMPICS FOREVER!!!! StopOlympicsForever
LetsBlameChina slodek NathanPLayne saitomri So this is how Japan won the bid.
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri Please let you know how much Dentsu rules japanese media with no reason, and for the reason, they also can give an effect to japanese goverment. We, japanese citizens don‘t have a measure to solve it, cause they and japanese goverment support each other like a mafia😠
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri 悪代官そのもの画像w よく撮ったなw
Can't be surprised. dirtyDentsu should have dirty money.
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri Thank you for the information in English. Expand this shit true to the world
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri オリンピック中止しよう。
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri なぜ日本が報道しない、、、
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri ;—}› organized crime
slodek NathanPLayne saitomri what?
Can you please tell us when anything the IOC does that is 100% kosher beginning to end instead? Because that would be breaking news
It‘s Haruyuki Takahashi who received $8.2million doller !
Not shocking, how else could you decide to have the SUMMER Olympics at time in place that is sweltering..ah yes, bribes Money life
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: Forbes - 🏆 394. / 53 Read more »
Source: Forbes - 🏆 394. / 53 Read more »
Source: Reuters - 🏆 2. / 97 Read more »
Source: TheEconomist - 🏆 6. / 92 Read more »
Source: Reuters - 🏆 2. / 97 Read more »
Source: NPR - 🏆 96. / 63 Read more »