The show director of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics opening ceremony is dismissed the day before the event. It follows historic footage from the 1990s emerging of Kentaro Kobayashi seemingly making jokes about the Holocaust.
The incident is the latest in a series of scandals to hit this year’s Games. A couple of days ago a composer working on the ceremony quit after it came to light he bullied classmates at school who had disabilities. Creative chief Hiroshi Sasaki quit in March following comments about plus-size comedian Naomi Watanabe appearing as an “Olympig”. And in February, the head of the organising committee, Yoshiro Mori, had to step down after making “inappropriate” remarks about women.
The latest scandal involves a sketch performed by former comedian Kobayashi 23 years ago. In it, he and another comedian are taking on the role of children’s entertainers. In reference to some paper dolls, Kobayashi says, “the ones from that time you said ‘let’s play the Holocaust'”.
Mr Kobayashi’s actions in the video received strong criticism. Japan’s Olympic chief Seiko Hashimoto says it ridicules “painful facts of history”.
Meanwhile, Rabbi Abraham Cooper adds: “Any person, no matter how creative, does not have the right to mock the victims of the Nazi genocide”.
In response to his dismissal, Mr Kobayashi issued a statement saying he regrets what he did. He says, “entertainment should not make people feel uncomfortable. I understand that my stupid choice of words at that time was wrong”.
Rising unease
All the scandals have not helped the Games, which already face opposition about holding them in Japan. There is rising unease about coronavirus still spreading fast throughout the nation. But there was determination for them to still go ahead after being postponed last year because of the pandemic.
A recent poll show as many as 55% of people in the country oppose the Games, amid fears of it becoming a super-spreader event. Organisers are already having to deal with increasing cases of Covid among athletes and officials, with reports 91 people have tested positive.
A state of emergency is also declared for the duration of the Olympics as Covid cases rise in Japan, where only of a third of the population are vaccinated.
The opening ceremony, with only 950 in attendance to minimise risk, will officially start the two week tournament. But organisers are now re-assessing Friday’s event following Mr Kobayashi’s dismissal.
As the opening ceremony looms, Ms Hashimoto sends apologies “for causing concern to those involved in the Olympics, to the citizens of Tokyo and the Japanese public”.
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