Japan Scaling Down 2020 Tokyo Olympic Stadium

Japan is scaling down the planned main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, following an uproar from some prominent architects who think it's too big and expensive.

Hakubun Shimomura, the minister in charge of education, sports and science, told Parliament Wednesday the stadium designed by award-winning British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid would cost 300 billion yen ($3 billion) to build, and that was "too massive a budget." He says Hadid's design will be used but the project will be scaled back.

The 80,000-seat futuristic-looking stadium has been billed as costing 130 billion yen ($1.3 billion). The minister's estimate includes surrounding construction and infrastructure costs.

Architect Fumihiko Maki and 100 other experts say the project is too big.

The plans were approved earlier this year. Shimomura's remarks signal a policy shift.