Watanabe stresses significance of IOC presidency bid
Morinari Watanabe said Monday that his bid to be president of the International Olympic Committee was meaningful, despite it being unsuccessful.
"There was a world that I was able to see because I ran," Watanabe, 66, head of the International Gymnastics Federation, told a news conference in Tokyo. "I believe running for the IOC presidency means a lot to the Japanese."
Watanabe, who became the first Japanese to seek the top IOC post, earned only four of the 97 valid votes in the election last week after serving as a member of the committee for seven years and proposing to hold the Summer Olympics simultaneously on five continents.
The election was won by Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry, who will be the first female IOC chief.
"She will surely open a new era," Watanabe said.
Watanabe ruled out the possibility of seeking an executive status in the committee although expressing intention to "continue to inspire the sports world."
Meanwhile, he showed concern over a possible decline in Japan's influence over the IOC after 2029, when he is set to retire from the committee due to the age limit of 70.
Expecting to see another Japanese presidential candidate in the future, he said, "My dream is that someday a Japanese will be the IOC president."
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