I think that Prime Minister Abe is a very smart man and I have no doubt that when he put it to the IOC that we postpone the Games... he had in mind a positive economic stimulus for Tokyo and Japan in what would otherwise be a downturn, i think there will be a lot of countries and cities around the world wishing for a similar opportunity.

John Coates

We owe it to the people of Tokyo to make sure they are fully brie... by John Coates

We owe it to the people of Tokyo to make sure they are fully briefed.

Australia is very grateful for this opportunity which was confirmed this weekend and there will be enormous interest from our Oceania neighbors, this is something I have been pursuing for more than 20 years.

Does the judge, in the end, see a pattern of bad faith and refusal to move as quickly as reasonably possible? If so, then Williams wins.

We'd have liked the stadium to have commenced but we couldn't run and they couldn't run with those costs so we've just got to make sure we work with them to make sure the next design isn't expensive and that it's finished on time but everything else they've been very good.

(The IOC) has come out and specifically said that we should make the maximum use of existing facilities, and that, so far as I am concerned, overrides the 8km philosophy which we had as part of the bid, We have suggested to the organizing committee that for the preliminaries for basketball, just as for football, they may care to look at cities like Osaka that might have large venues.

Absolutely, Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool via REUTERSQuestions’s going ahead, the Prime Minister of Japan said that to the President of the United States two or three weeks ago. The Prime Minister of Japan continues to say that to the IOC.

If we were doing that, we would have pushed ahead with them last year. We did n’t, i do n’t want these kids to miss the one opportunity they have in their lifetime. We’re doing it so these kids can fulfill their dreams.

Next year, in 2021, if Japan is anywhere like the rest of the world, there is an economic downturn, a recession maybe, these Games are a very positive opportunity for an economic stimulus, these Games can be how you kickstart the economy again. These Games could be the re-birth of the tourism industry, these Games could provide opportunities for hotel operators, for your airlines.

We will be exploring all opportunities to optimise and streamline the scope and service levels at the Games, and reduce the costs that have been caused by the postponement, all of the athletes services will remain the same but there must be other areas of hosting a Games that we can look at and decide what are the must-haves and what are the nice-to-haves.