Tokyo Olympics chief Yoshiro Mori has apologised for sexist comments about women talking too much, but said he would not resign, as his remarks sparked a storm of criticism on social media and risked tainting public opinion of the Games.
Mori, 83, apologised at a hastily called news conference, but when pressed on whether he really thought women talked too much, he said: "I don't listen to women that much lately so I don't know".
Mori, whose term as prime minister was marked by a string of gaffes and blunders, made the comments at a Japanese Olympic Committee board of trustees meeting this week.
"If we increase the number of female board members, we have to make sure their speaking time is restricted somewhat, they have difficulty finishing, which is annoying," said Mori, according to local media.
Mori acknowledged that his comments were "inappropriate" and against the Olympic spirit.
Mori has apologised and the IOC considers the matter "closed," a spokesperson at IOC said in a statement.
Japan persistently trails its peers in promoting gender equality, ranking 121 out of 153 nations surveyed in the 2020 global gender gap report of the World Economic Forum.