Tokyo Olympics board meet to discuss Yoshiro Mori’s derogatory remarks about women

Former primer minister claimed meetings dragged on as women 'talked too much'

There have been repeated calls for Yoshiro Mori's resignation (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Organisers of the Tokyo Olympics will convene for an executive board meeting later this week to discuss the derogatory remarks made about women made by the head of the Games' organising committee, Yoshiro Mori.

Last week, the 83-year-old former prime minister claimed that meetings took too long as “competitive” women “talked too much”. After fierce criticism, Mori later retracted his comments and apologised.

The IOC said Mori’s comments were “absolutely inappropriate and in contradiction to the IOC’s commitments and the reforms of its Olympic agenda 2020” and there have been repeated calls for his resignation.

According to local media, hundreds of Olympic volunteers have since resigned. “We are taking this very seriously,” the Olympic minister, Seiko Hashimoto, said on Tuesday. A poll conducted by Kyodo found that almost 60 per cent of people considered Mori "unfit" to lead the organising committee.

The board of executives will now meet on Friday to discuss their next step amid the public outcry. The board will also discuss gender equality initiatives.