Toyota stops sponsoring the International Olympic Committee. The Japanese car manufacturer believes that the Olympic Games are becoming “increasingly political”, causing the sport to take a back seat.
In 2015, the carmaker entered into a ten-year partnership. That contract will not be extended. “I have been wondering for some time whether the event really puts athletes first,” Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda said in a company podcast.
“For me, the Olympic Games should be about athletes from all backgrounds facing all kinds of challenges and achieving the impossible,” he said earlier.
Earlier, the Japanese technology company Panasonic had already ended its collaboration with the IOC. Panasonic had been an official partner since 1987. The Japanese public broadcaster NHK also ended the collaboration.