Seiko Hashimoto, Considered Successor to Mori Yoshiro
Forced Kiss to Young Male Skater During Tenure as Skating Federation President
[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Amid the resignation of Mori Yoshiro (84), Chairman of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee, due to sexist remarks, controversy continues over Seiko Hashimoto, who is considered a strong candidate.
This follows revelations of inappropriate behavior by Hashimoto, the Minister in charge of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, during her time as president of the Skating Federation, including forcibly kissing a young male athlete.
According to Japanese media such as the Asahi Shimbun on the 18th, the review committee responsible for selecting the organizing committee chairman has decided to recommend Minister Hashimoto as the sole candidate.
It is expected that Hashimoto will be elected as the new chairman following the organizing committee board meeting scheduled for that day.
Minister Hashimoto won a bronze medal in the 1500m speed skating event at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, becoming the first Japanese woman to win an Olympic medal in speed skating. She also participated three times in summer Olympic cycling events.
Afterwards, Hashimoto was first elected to the House of Councillors in 1995, is currently serving her fifth term, and has been the Minister in charge of the Olympics since September 2019.
Amid this, past inappropriate behavior has come under scrutiny, sparking controversy.
In 2014, it was reported by a Japanese weekly magazine that she forcibly kissed figure skater Daisuke Takahashi (35).
At the time, Hashimoto was president of the Japan Skating Federation and was criticized for effectively committing sexual violence by abusing her superior position.
Masaki Kito, head of the Link Law Office, pointed out on Twitter that "she is not suitable as Mori's successor, who resigned due to lack of gender sensitivity."
Numerous photos showing Hashimoto embracing and kissing a man presumed to be Takahashi were posted on Twitter.
The latest issue of the Japanese weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun, released on the 17th, reported, "Hashimoto's sexual harassment is not limited to the Takahashi case," adding that "a former female lawmaker, one of the victims, testified that Hashimoto has a habit of kissing people around her when drunk."
Aside from whether appointing Hashimoto as chairman is appropriate, there are also criticisms regarding the lack of transparency in the organizing committee's selection process.
According to the Tokyo Shimbun, the organizing committee remained silent regarding reports that the candidate list had been narrowed down to only Hashimoto.
They neither held briefings nor press conferences about the selection, only distributing materials stating that the second meeting to review candidates was held on the 17th and a third meeting was scheduled for the 18th.
Previously, before resigning, Mori attempted to appoint his close associate Kawabuchi Saburo (85), former president of the Japan Football Association, as his successor but abandoned the plan after facing backlash over the secretive appointment process.
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