Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota Motor, has resigned from the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee that is spearheading the city’s bid for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Toyoda was one of the more notable business executives on the planning committee, serving as one of five vice presidents. The Tokyo Organizing Committee is planning to meet in “the near future” to name a new executive board member to succeed Toyoda.
Toyoda will remain in his position as chair of the Japan Business Federation’s Committee, helping lead the private sector’s support of the games. “I am looking forward to forging even closer ties between the Organizing Committee and Japan’s business community,” Toyoda said in a prepared statement.
The exit of Toyoda comes amid a few recent snafus, including an emblem that had to be withdrawn amid accusations of copyright infringement and concerns about a pricy $2-billion main Olympic stadium.
Toyoda first joined Toyota in 1984, a career that includes postings in various phases of automotive operations both in Japan and internationally. He became president in June 2009.