Olympic GamesInternational Olympics officials said yesterday they were "hugely impressed" by Tokyo's bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

At stake are an estimated three trillion yen (€24 billion) in economic impact and the chance, Japanese officials say, to showcase the country’s recovery from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disasters in the way the 1964 Tokyo Summer Games highlighted the nation’s return after its second World War defeat.

“We have been hugely impressed by the quality of the bid presentations made by the bid committee,” said Craig Reedie, vice president of the International Olympics Committee (IOC).