Okinawa and a disaster area of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami were raised as options for the torch relay of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the games' organizing committee said Tuesday.

The organizers' torch relay panel met for the fourth time on Tuesday, with an eye to draw up the concept by August for the International Olympic Committee. The relay concept for the Paralympics must be submitted to the International Paralympic Committee by February.

Yukihiko Nunomura, 2020 COO, said the 18 panelists continued to discuss a number of issues such as the route and duration of the relay, which will pass through all 47 of Japan's prefectures.

While a decision has yet to be taken on where the relay will start, it is beginning to take shape based on the three previous Olympic Games Japan has hosted.

"We explained where it started in the past. Given the climate of the country, one option is to start the relay from somewhere in the south," Nunomura said. "Another is to begin the relay in one of the disaster areas and there was some discussion on that."

"The Japanese isles run long, stretch out from north to south. In some parts of the country, it can still be pretty chilly in the spring or in the early summer."

"In the past, Okinawa served as a starting point for Tokyo, Nagano and Sapporo with the relay moving up north along with the cherry blossom front."

The panel will meet again June 20.