Intro:

International Olympic Committee chief executive Christophe Dubi explains venue changes for the 2022 Olympic Games.

Script:

SOUNDBITE (English) Christophe Dubi, IOC Executive Director:

"So, on Tokyo, the decision that was made was to move the basketball venue and not to build one venue - which was an expensive one - which is totally admissible for the international federation and for us. There is a fantastic venue in Saitama which has been used for the World Championships and this one will be used. So, that's one of the sports. This generate considerable amount of savings, by not building the venue.
"I think we are still in the time frame where you can confidently make these changes. What is really important, though, is to keep the integrity of the original idea. Yes, you will have a number of venues which will be a little bit further away. But one has to recognise that the plan, as compact as it was, would have generated other types of issues in terms of operations. So, when I speak about the integrity, even though it will be further away, the venues are relatively still close. And the athletes experience will be preserved."