Bribery's long shadow over bidding for sports events

Greek actress Katerina Lehou (R), playing the role of High Priestess, lights an Olympic torch during the handover ceremony of the Olympic Flame to the delegation of the 2016 Rio Olympics, at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, Greece, April 27, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

Japan has denied allegations of bribery in Tokyo's bid to host the 2020 Olympics, after French investigators found a total of 230 million yen ($2 million) had been transferred into the account of a Singaporean company owned by ex-IOC member Lamine Diack between July and October 2013. Global Times commented on Wednesday:

If the allegations prove true, it would be a major scandal that would not only damage Japan's image but also cast a shadow over the Olympic Games.

Istanbul, which lost out to Tokyo, is now complaining that the failure of its bid was because it did not give money to influential IOC members.

However, the media in the United States have stayed far away from the suspected scandal. This is because the US media outlets have become increasingly soft on negative news about Japan as it is the most important ally of the United States in the Asia-Pacific region.

There have also been claims of bribery in the World Cup bidding process. The Olympics and the World Cup are global events.

We believe that bribery and cheating, which is seemingly involved in selecting the hosts for these sporting galas, betrays the sporting spirit.