The International Olympic Committee and local organizers agreed Friday to 52 items for simplifying next year's postponed Tokyo Games, with spending on officials and other non-athletes identified as a key area for cost cutting.
On the second day of their online meetings, the local organizers and the IOC Coordination Commission agreed to measures, including scrapping welcome ceremonies, reviewing the number of vehicles for the torch relay and reducing food, beverage and transportation expenses.
Since the games were postponed in March due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the organizers and IOC have prioritized streamlining the event in light of both the health risks and the extra costs stemming from the unprecedented one-year delay.
The organizers will now evaluate the cost savings from the proposed measures and plan to present their findings at the IOC board meeting in October.
The IOC and local organizers reached a principle agreement in June on simplifying the Olympics. They now expect a 10-15 percent reduction in the number of non-athlete participants at the games, which are scheduled to open on July 23.
Coordination Commission chairman John Coates said the changes were part of "a new games for a post-corona world" with long-lasting implications for future Olympics.
"We're going to leave an important legacy which we're already calling the Tokyo model...that will become a blueprint that will benefit future Olympic organizing committees for years to come," Coates, the IOC's vice president, said.
The organizers would continue identifying further areas to increase savings and revenue "right up until the games," added Coates.
In an apparent acknowledgement of calls to cancel the games amid the coronavirus pandemic, Coates said doing so would betray athletes who have dedicated their lives to competing in Tokyo.
"We cannot disregard a generation of Olympic athletes," he said.
In a statement following the meeting, the Coordination Commission said the organizers were developing and reviewing coronavirus countermeasures which would "continue to evolve in line with the monitoring of the global situation."
Among the measures agreed Friday, organizers plan to review spending on food and drink for parties related to the opening ceremony.
Entry ceremonies to mark the arrival of teams at the athletes' village will be scrapped, along with the opening ceremony for the IOC meeting preceding the games.
The torch relay will keep its 121-day schedule, but the number of staff involved may also be reviewed along with the vehicles.
The organizers plan to pare back the amount of lighting and additional temporary power supplies for venues, as well as decorations.
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