Officials Brush Off Minor Protest on IOC Visit

Around 50 anti-Olympic protestors carrying placards staked out the proposed venue for Tokyo`s waterfront main stadium.

Tokyo's 2016 bid leaders dismissed a minor protest by demonstrators during a visit by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Friday.

Around 50 anti-Olympic protestors carrying placards staked out the proposed venue for Tokyo's waterfront main stadium on the IOC evaluation team's whistle-stop tour of the Japanese capital.

"Japan is a democratic country," Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara told a media briefing. "Not just in Japan but anywhere in the world people are allowed to express their opinions.

"No civil society has the right to suppress people's opinions. It is up to the IOC to decide on who will host the Olympics."

Tokyo bid chairman Ichiro Kono added: "The demonstration didn't affect the tour."

The 13-member IOC team, led by Moroccan Nawal El Moutawakel, were greeted by flag-waving children and marching bands during a day-long visit of 33 sites.

Tokyo bid officials, who took the IOC members on a public monorail during their tour, finished the day with a flourish by lighting the Olympic cauldron used for the 1964 Games.

"I remember the 1964 Olympics being my field of dreams," Ishihara said. "I would love to bring it back here and leave a legacy for future generations."

The first Asian city to stage the Olympics 45 years ago, Tokyo faces competition from Chicago, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid. The IOC will select the winner in Copenhagen on Oct. 2.

Tokyo's bid topped the IOC's overall technical evaluation last June ahead of Madrid.

"The IOC members had a detailed knowledge of Tokyo's bid," said Kono. "They had very specific questions and you could tell they were very happy with our plan."

Japanese officials insist the city is best placed to emerge from the global financial crisis and host a debt-free Olympics in 2016.

However, Barack Obama's landslide victory in the United States presidential election last November appeared to give his home city of Chicago a major boost in the bidding race.

The IOC inspectors, who visited Chicago earlier this month, wrap up their visit to Tokyo on Sunday before moving on to Madrid and Rio.