Faced with relatively mixed public opinion and faced with the current positioning of the Japan Olympic Committee (JOC), Sapporo’s candidacy seems to be gradually reconsidering the timetable for its project, with now the probability of moving the cursor from 2030 to 2034.
View of Sapporo in winter (Credits – Visit Sapporo / Official Local Travel Information)
The putting on hold of the candidature process for the Host City of the 1972 Winter Games, then the latest declarations from the JOC doubtless weighed in the balance, leading to the shaking of the certainties of the municipal authorities until then exclusively focused on organization of the 2030 Olympics.
It must be said that the last few months have been particularly tumultuous for the one whose favorite status had been built according to the evolution of international competition, and in particular the preference for 2034 expressed by the most serious rival of the Japanese project, namely Salt Lake City (Utah, USA).
Also, by taking advantage of this boulevard offered on the way to the 2030 Olympics and also betting on the Tokyo 2020 Games – for which the walking events and the marathon had been relocated to Sapporo – the bid had gradually consolidated its positioning, she who was forced to withdraw from the race for the 2026 Olympics a few years ago.
Nevertheless, the scandals surrounding Tokyo 2020 have put a serious brake on this candidacy, all the more so considering the volatility of public opinion anxious not to suffer – once again – the increase in the estimated costs and, in fineembarrassing late revelations about the management of the organization of the Games.
Also, when a reflection was imposed in the spring of 2023 to review the conditions of the candidacy and its promotion, the idea of a postponement to the 2034 edition began to gain ground.
This has even been reinforced in recent weeks by the positioning of the JOC, whose recently re-elected President, Yasuhiro Yamashita, has made no secret of his doubts about Sapporo’s ability to be ready for 2030, not in terms of structural preparations, but more with regard to popular support and the transparency of decisions.
Katsuhiro Akimoto, Mayor of Sapporo, and Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, August 7, 2021 (Credits – IOC / Greg Martin)
In the past few days, the message has in any case been received from the side of Sapporo City Hall.
As Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto said at a press conference on June 30, 2023:
I think it will be difficult to resume activities to bring the Winter Olympics to Sapporo if we don’t raise more awareness about the event..
This statement – taken up by the Japanese daily “The Asahi Shimbun” – came two days after the city authorities announced an overhaul of strategy around the management plans for the Games.
Concretely, Sapporo plans to establish an open system to ensure the recruitment of part of the members of the Board of Directors of a future Organizing Committee, while moving towards the establishment of a third-party authority responsible for supervising the work of the said Committee, with a concern for transparency vis-à-vis the stakeholders in the Games and even more so with regard to the population.
In addition to these initiatives relating to internal operations, Sapporo also intends to organize public meetings throughout the various districts of the city. Without mentioning the prospect of a referendum – which has had such an impact on certain Olympic candidacies in the past – the municipal authorities thus hope to regain the confidence of the public.
However, this strategy is a double-edged sword.
In the race for the 2024 Olympics, Boston (Massachusetts, United States) had thus chosen to multiply public meetings as the polls plummeted. But rather than starting the survey curve upwards, this initiative had the effect of producing the opposite effect by accelerating the fall in candidacy.
(Credits – Visit Sapporo / Official Local Travel Information)
Be that as it may, the implementation of the actions promised by the City of Sapporo today seems incompatible with the continuation of the candidacy for 2030.
With a project partly based on the legacy of the 1972 Olympics and on existing infrastructures, the latter could therefore take the direction of 2034, or even a later date.
Because the International Olympic Committee (IOC) – anxious to preserve the brand image of the Games which it has been trying to restore for several years – has also turned away from Sapporo somewhat over the months.
At present, Stockholm (Sweden) appears to be in a strong position for 2030. To confirm this trend, the proposed project will still have to be sufficiently convincing for public opinion and the local and national authorities, masters of the destiny of the Swedish candidacy.
For 2034, the future host seems to have already found everything, with the solidity of the proposal expressed by Salt Lake City, which has managed to maintain a precious and comfortable head start.
