(ATR) An independent panel will be appointed to select the best practice of choosing an Olympic Games mascot.
The panel will advise the organizing committee on the appropriate schedule for the selection process, and how the committee should solicit entries, according to reports in Japanese media. A spokesperson for Tokyo 2020 told Kyodo News the independent panel was created to avoid the embarrassment caused from the first logo selection.
Tokyo 2020’s original logo had to be withdrawn after plagiarism accusations swirled following its release. The logo was scrapped after a Belgian theater brought the accusations against the organizing committee. Rather than fight the charges, Tokyo 2020 pulled the logo, seeking a "fresh start." Eventually a 19-member committee was created to oversee the new logo selection process.
Members for the mascot selection panel have not been decided. Tokyo 2020 says the panel will look to present the new selection process to the IOC and International Paralympic Committee in March 2017.
"We think there are two very important aspects in selecting [mascots]," Hikari Ono, Tokyo 2020 spokesperson said to Kyodo. "One is that it requires high-level specialization in a wide variety of fields and quality and the second is that the selection process should be transparent and participatory."
In addition to a mascot selection panel, Tokyo 2020 is exploring the creation of a separate panel to oversee the design of the Olympic and Paralympic torches. The panel will explore potential criteria for selecting the designs and routes for each torch.
According to Ono the torch relay panel will include members of the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, different Prefectural governments, national government representatives, athletes, and sport federations leaders. The findings from the panel are expected to be presented to the IOC August 2017 and to the IPC in February 2018 according to the report.
Written by Aaron Bauer
25 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.