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Japan's Olympic logo dumped over plagiarism claims

September 1, 2015

A week after the logo's designer was accused of plagiarizing, new claims of copying have surfaced. But the Olympic Committee said public opinion, and not the allegations, had forced them to scrap the emblem.

https://p.dw.com/p/1GOpw
Image: Reuters/Y. Shino

The official logo for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo was ditched on Tuesday, after fresh plagiarism claims against the designer of the emblem.

Kenjiro Sano, who last week faced allegations that he stole the idea from the logo of a Belgian theatre, was also accused of using a photo from another website in his launch presentation for the 2020 Games' logo.

According to footage shown on Japan's national broadcaster NHK, the photo used replaced images of banners hanging from the ceiling at Tokyo airport with those of his Olympic logo.

Olympic organizers agreed on Tuesday to have a new logo designed but maintained that their decision to scrap the original design was linked to falling public opinion, rather than the plagiarism claims.

The organizing committee now faces a lawsuit from a Belgian designer, who claimed the logo was too similar to his designs for the Theatre de Liege. The original Olympics logo is already being used in advertising campaigns by sponsors, including Japan Airlines.

Sano has denied the allegations, adding that he took a lot of time over his creations, "nurturing them like children." But as the scandal escalated, he also called for the logo to be pulled to avoid damaging the Games.

Organizers had twice asked him to tweak his original work to avoid possible trademark violations, they said.

Belgien Theatre de Liege Plagiatsverdacht Olympisches Logo Tokyo 2020
Belgian designer Olivier Debie compares the Olympics emblem with his logo for the Theatre de LiegeImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo/G. Vanden Wijngaert

As recently as Friday, Toshiro Muto, director general of the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games remained supportive of Sano, saying: "We are confident that the Games' logo design is original."

The emblems for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics were unveiled on July 24 to mixed reviews. Both designs incorporate the red circle found in the center of the Japanese flag.

Sano said the main motif, which centers around the letter T for Tokyo, was his career "masterpiece." But an online petition calling for it to be replaced had gained 22,000 signatures by Tuesday.

The logo scandal is the second embarrassment for Japan as it prepares to host the 2020 games. In June, the initial design of the main stadium was scrapped following public outrage over skyrocketing costs. A new design is set to be unveiled later this year and ministers have promised it will cost 40 percent less than the original.

mm/kms (AFP, AP, dpa)