The Japanese Olympic Commission (JOC) will appoint Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara as the director-general of Tokyo Olympic Bidding Committee for the 2016 Summer Games, the commission said on Friday.

The committee said it chose Ishihara because of his strong leadership and position as the governor of Tokyo. It plans to appoint the rest of its 12 board members from Tokyo's metropolitan assembly, academic experts from the business community in Japan, and former Olympic athletes, according to a statement.

So far 18 countries have expressed desire to host the Games, including Argentina, Chile, UAE, Germany, India, Tokyo, Kenya, Spain, Mexico, Canada, Motherlands, Portugal, Qatar, Brazil, Russia, Israel, Thailand, and United States.

Japan previously hosted the 1964 Summer Games along with th1972 and 1988 Winter Olympics in 1972 and 1998.

The next Summer Games will be held in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012. Because of the locations of previous Games, some analysts assume that the Summer Games in 2012 may be held somewhere exc Asia and Europe.

Germany Thailand Kenya Japan