NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games Organizing Committee (AINAGOC) apologized on Saturday for problems involving accommodation and transportation during the Games.
The committee pledged to strengthen operations for the remainder of the Games to improve services and event management.
Speaking at a press conference at the Main Press Center, AINAGOC Secretary-General Satoshi Murate said the committee accepted responsibility for providing accommodation and transportation services, regardless of the causes of individual problems.
"There have been mistakes in accommodation and transport for various reasons. Whatever the cause, AINAGOC is responsible for providing the service, and I frankly apologize for the mistakes," Murate said. "Our staff work every day to identify the causes of each mistake and make sure they don't happen again."
"I think you can see that accommodation and transport have improved greatly compared with the early days," he added.
Murate said the number of athletes had exceeded initial estimates after registration figures were finalized. AINAGOC discussed the issue with the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and established rules to accommodate the higher numbers.
He acknowledged that preparations had not gone far enough to anticipate every situation, particularly when the agreed rules were not followed.
"Transport operations have also required additional checks," Murate said. "Bus dispatching involves constantly changing travel information among numerous locations, as well as legal requirements for drivers, making it a complex operation."
"AINAGOC is now conducting double and triple checks of dispatch information, with staff comparing requests against dispatch lists to ensure each journey's start and end points match," Murate added.
Murate said some venues had noticeable numbers of empty seats, despite overall ticket sales rates of 60 percent or higher for the opening and closing ceremonies and 33 sports.
He attributed the empty seats to several factors, including sessions featuring multiple matches, allocated stakeholder seats that went unused, and seats that could not be sold because of press, broadcasting or competition requirements.
AINAGOC, he said, was not satisfied with the situation and would continue selling tickets while encouraging ticket holders to attend.
"We want as many people as possible to see these athletes in action," Murate said, stressing the importance of full stadiums and enthusiastic crowds in creating the atmosphere of an international sporting event.
With hundreds of events still to come, AINAGOC said it would continue working to improve transportation, accommodation, venue attendance and communications while seeking to ensure a smooth conclusion to the Games. ■