Yoshiro Mori, the president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee, has been given a “gold medal” for sexism from an international human rights advocacy group after he said that women talk too much.
Human Rights Watch announced the award in a Feb. 4 news release. “Women in Japan are grossly underrepresented in sports federation leadership,” although the Japanese Olympic Committee and the organizing committee, which Yoshiro Mori chairs, “have an important role to play when it comes to gender equality and stopping abuse of athletes,” the release read.
During an online JOC meeting on Feb. 3, Mori, 83, complained about the committee’s push for gender diversity on its board, saying women have “a strong sense of rivalry” and that when one female member raises her hand to speak, “everyone ends up saying something.”
Facing mounting criticism, the gaffe-prone former prime minister apologized Feb. 4 for his “inappropriate” comments and retracted them but said he would not resign.
“With the global reckoning over #MeToo abuses, Japan’s female athletes, including in gymnastics, swimming and wrestling, have made accusations of harassment and abuse,” the New York-based rights group said, referring to the worldwide movement against sexual violence. (Kyodo)