WASHINGTON: White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki on Friday criticized Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics organizing committee chief Yoshiro Mori’s recent sexist remarks that are forcing him to resign.

“We certainly didn’t approve of those comments,” Psaki said at a press conference. She refrained from commenting on Mori’s resignation, saying only, “Let me work to get you a more specific reaction from our team.”

Earlier in the day, Mori announced his decision to resign as president of the organizing committee after drawing ire both in and outside of Japan for his remarks earlier this month that meetings attended by a lot of women tend to be time-consuming.

The U.S. government has not discussed whether the Tokyo Summer Games should be held or whether the United States will send its athletes to the events, according to Psaki.

The Olympic and Paralympic Games, originally scheduled for 2020, have been postponed by one year to this summer due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, U.S. President Joe Biden said that whether or not the Tokyo Games can be held safely this summer “has to be based on science.”

JIJI Press