Dai Tamesue, center, finishes third in men’s 400-meter hurdles during the World Athletics Championships in 2001. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
A seemingly simple inquiry at a meeting has led to a wave of sports organizations withholding the heights and weights of athletes from public viewing.
Some officials fear that such details could be used to torment the athletes on social media or by their competitors to gain an advantage.
Others said these body features are private information or are irrelevant to the sports being played.
The Japan Association of Athletics Federations in February decided to refrain from collecting athletes’ heights and weights and publishing them in brochures and other media.