Inose made the controversial remarks in an interview with the New York Times, which was published in its April 26 edition.
"For the athletes, where will be the best place to be?" Inose said through an interpreter during the interview in New York. "Well, compare the two countries where they have yet to build infrastructure, very sophisticated facilities. So, from time to time, like Brazil, I think it’s good to have a venue for the first time. But Islamic countries, the only thing they share in common is Allah and they are fighting with each other, and they have classes.”
Three bidders - Istanbul, Madrid and Tokyo - are competing to win the right to host the 2020 Olympics. Gov. Inose is also chairman of the Tokyo 2020 bid.
During the interview, Inose also brushed aside the notion that Olympic delegates may favor Istanbul's bid because Turkey has a far younger population than Japan. "I'm sure people in Turkey want to live long," he said. "And if they want to live long, they should create a culture like what we have in Japan. There might be a lot of young people, but if they die young, it doesn’t mean much."
According to Article 14 of the Rules of Conduct for bidders, "Cities shall refrain from any act or comment likely to tarnish the image of a rival city or be prejudicial to it. Any comparison with other cities is strictly forbidden."
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com