Seiko Hashimoto: Last News

A day before the Opening Ceremony of the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics, the show’s director has been fired over a Holocaust joke he made during a comedy routine 23 years ago.

Daily Star's biggest headlines straight to your inbox!The director of the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics has been fired, the day before the event.Kentaro Kobayashi has been dismissed over comments about the Holocaust he made during a comedy show back in 1998.Kobayashi is accused of using a joke about the Holocaust in his act, including the phrase “Let’s play Holocaust”.He has now been fired ahead of the opening ceremony, which takes place on Friday ahead of the delayed Games.Organising committee president Seiko Hashimoto said: “We found out that Mr Kobayashi, in his own performance, has used a phrase ridiculing a historical tragedy.“We deeply apologise for causing such a development the day before the opening ceremony and for

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By Andreas Wiseman

All eyes are on Tokyo, Japan, as the impact of the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread across the globe. The 2020 Summer Olympic Games are scheduled to take place in the capital city of Japan from July 24 until Aug. 9 of this year, but as COVID-19 continues to affect the country and has led to major event cancellations in various parts of the world, many have been wondering whether this year's Olympics will continue on as planned.

The 2020 Summer Olympics are supposed to be held this summer in Tokyo, Japan. Last week, it was revealed that the games could be completely cancelled because of the Coronavirus, which has infected 90,000 worldwide so far and killed 3,000.