[...] At the Sept. 9 opening ceremony of the World Cup Series Enoshima on Enoshima island, dolphins performed jumping tricks in front of sailors and other parties at Enoshima Aquarium near the event venue.
Some competitors from abroad, who are opposed to the capture and display of dolphins, expressed their dismay on Twitter.
“Couldn’t be more embarrassed with what I’m witnessing. We are sailors, and apparently a ‘green sport,’” said a tweet by a competitor [...]
Hirobumi Kawano, president of the Japan Sailing Federation and chairman of the organizing committee, said the dolphin show was intended to be “a surprise that symbolizes Enoshima.”
“We received many positive responses, but it is a sensitive issue on which people from different countries have different opinions,” Kawano said. “We would like to apologize to those who were offended by the show.”
World Sailing, an organizer of the World Cup series and the international governing body for the sport, said in a statement that it was “disappointed” with the performance.
“All content in Opening and Closing Ceremonies of World Sailing events must be pre-approved by World Sailing and no such approval was given nor sought from the Organizing Committee for the show,” the statement read.
[...]