Olympics: Japan marks three years to Tokyo 2020 as issues linger

Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike waves the Olympic flag during a ceremony marking three years to go before the start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games at the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Building on July 24, 2017. -AFP

TOKYO: Japan Monday marked three years before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with celebrations and fanfare -- even as organisers struggle to contain soaring costs and restore credibility.

Japanese celebrities and athletes dressed in bright kimonos gathered for the launch of a remake of a popular 1964 Tokyo Olympics song, as organisers promised to turn the 2020 Games into the biggest “natsu matsuri” (summer festival) ever.