Japan Vows No More Deaths From Overwork While Building Olympic Arena

Reporters try to use real-size mock model of the spectators' seats for the New National Stadium, the main stadium of Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics, during a media opportunity in Tokyo, Japan Oct. 13. REUTERS/Issei Kato

TOKYO—A Japanese sports official promised on Friday to work with the builder of a showpiece stadium for the 2020 Olympics to stamp out “death by overwork”, a designation authorities applied last week to the suicide of a stadium worker.

The parents of the 23-year-old petitioned the government this year to recognize his suicide as “karoshi” - or “death by overwork”, with media saying he had worked 200 hours of overtime a month before his death.