Hatoyama to Attend IOC Meeting to Push Tokyo's 2016 Bid

Tokyo, Sept. 28 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama
will attend the International Olympic Committee's general meeting in
Copenhagen on Friday to give a push to Tokyo's bid to host the 2016
Olympics, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano said Monday.

Hirano told a press conference that it would be very significant if
the Summer Games are held in Japan, noting that the world sporting event
could be used as an opportunity to underscore the importance of world peace
and pass a bright future on to young generations.
Hatoyama is expected to leave for Danish capital on Thursday and
return home on Saturday, according to Hirano.
At the general meeting on Friday, the IOC is scheduled to choose
the host city for the 2016 Olympic Games from among the four candidate
cities--Chicago, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid.
If Tokyo is picked, it would be the second time for Summer Olympics
to be held in Japan after the 1964 Olympics in the Japanese capital.
Hirano also said that Japan can take the opportunity of the
Olympics to stress the need for environmental protection as Tokyo has
proposed making the 2016 Games an eco-friendly event.
Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara separately said Monday that he
believes Hatoyama's participation in the IOC meeting will be a driving force
for Tokyo's ambition to realize environmentally friendly Olympics because
the prime minister has voiced his active stance on tackling climate change.