Last week, Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto said he will meet with Yamashita today to "talk about how we should proceed".

The duo has claimed they will now target the 2034 or a later edition as the city struggles to get the support of the public following the bribery scandals Tokyo 2020.

"There's a possibility that moving forward with the bid movement too hastily will leave an irrecoverable wound on the value of sports," Yamashita said as quoted by Japanese press agency Kyodo News.

 "I'm sorry for the people of Sapporo and Hokkaido."

Akimoto, meanwhile, added that even the pathway to 2034 could be tricky due to the Tokyo 2020 bid-rigging allegations.

"It's a very tough situation," the Mayor said.

"We need to examine our future activities."

With Vancouver and Canada already out of the scene due to a lack of Government support and the United States and the Salt Lake City targeting the 2034 edition to avoid proximity with Los Angeles 2028, it is set to be a three-way battle between Sweden, Switzerland, and France for staging the event.

Earlier this week, more than 100 elected officials in France backed the bid centred on Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes' and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Switzerland, meanwhile, got its own boost after a new survey found 55 per cent of people polled supported the idea.

Sweden also looks optimistic after a successful feasibility study conducted by its National Olympic Committee.

The International Olympic Committee was due to elect a host for the 2030 Games at the Session in Mumbai that starts on Sunday (October 15) but has delayed the decision until next year amid problems with the bidders.

Japan staged the Winter Games twice with Sapporo playing host in 1972 and Nagano in 1998.