Nobel Laureate Yamanaka Pushes Osaka’s Expo Bid

June 14, 2018

Paris- Nobel-winning inventor of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells Shinya Yamanaka said Wednesday he will make his outmost to enable Osaka to host the 2025 World Exposition.

In the Japanese delegation's presentation of the Osaka Expo project at the general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions, or BIE, the head of Kyoto University's Center for iPS Research and Application said he will "do anything to turn the Osaka Expo into a great laboratory."

Japanese industry minister Hiroshige Seko pushed the western Japan city's bid to host the world trade fair for the second time by telling the audience his memories of the 1970 Osaka Expo.

He also pledged financial assistance for developing nations hoping to participate in the 2025 event, saying, "Osaka is waiting for you."

Besides speeches, Japanese delegates including Yamanaka and Ichiro Matsui, governor of Osaka Prefecture, danced on the stage.

"We delivered the best presentation," Matsui said later. But he quickly added, "Optimism can't be warranted until the race ends."

The 2025 Expo bid winner will be decided by vote at November's general assembly. Osaka's rivals are Russia's Ekaterinburg and Azerbaijan's Baku. Jiji Press