Olympic Games Tokyo 2020: Dates, Venues, Facts, Figures and Everything You Need to Know

The 2020 Summer Olympics and also known as Tokyo 2020, is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to be held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.

Rosie Nguyen

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Olympic Games Tokyo 2020: Dates, Venues, Facts, Figures and Everything You Need to Know

Olympic Games. Photo: olympics.com

The Olympic Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event celebrated as a global sports festival by people all over the world. The Olympic Games are held in both the summer and winter, with the ultimate goal of cultivating people and world peace through sports. The Games of the XXIX Olympiad held in Beijing in 2008 saw athletes from 204 countries and regions participate. London hosted the 2012 Olympics, commemorating the 30th Olympic Games.

Modern Olympic Games - world’s foremost multi-sports event

They are the largest sporting celebration in terms of the number of sports on the programme, the number of athletes present and the number of people from different nations gathered together at the same time, in the same place, in the spirit of friendly competition.

Photo: olympics.com

Organized every four years, they include a summer and a winter edition. Athletes from all 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Olympic Refugee Team are eligible to compete in a wide range of sporting disciplines and events, watched by a worldwide audience, according to Olympics.com.

The first edition of the modern Olympic Games was staged in Athens, Greece, in 1896, while the first winter edition was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. Since 1994, the Olympic Games have alternated between a summer and winter edition every two years within the four-year period of each Olympiad.

When and where is Olympic Games Tokyo 2020?

The 2020 Summer Olympic Games are scheduled to take place in the Japanese capital between 23 July and 8 August.

The Paralympic Games are between 24 August and 5 September.

They were postponed last year because of Covid, cited BBC.

The Olympics will feature 33 sports at 339 events across 42 venues. The Paralympics will feature 22 sports at 539 events across 21 venues.

Most events will be in the Greater Tokyo area.

Some football games and the marathon are in Sapporo in Hokkaido, which has emergency Covid measures in place until 11 July.

Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Trailer. Video: BBC

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games mascot

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games mascot. Photo: olympics.com

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games mascot is styled with the Ai (indigo blue) Ichimatsu pattern from the Tokyo 2020 Games emblem, a tribute to both the respected tradition and modern innovation of Japanese culture. MIRAITOWA has a personality inspired by the Japanese proverb, “learn from the past and develop new ideas”. MIRAITOWA is cheerful and remarkably athletic, with a very strong sense of integrity. It has a special power to instantly teleport anywhere it wants, cited Olympics.com

Origin of the name

The name MIRAITOWA is based on the Japanese words "mirai", meaning “future”, and "towa", meaning “eternity”, representing the wish that the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will lead to a future of everlasting hope in the hearts of everyone around the world.

Tokyo 2020 Facts and figures

General

206 National Olympic Committees + the IOC Refugee Olympic Team (EOR).
33 sports and 32 International Federations.
339 medal events, including 18 mixed/open events.
11,090 athletes will make the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 more youthful, more urban and more female, having practically reached gender balance with 48.8 per cent female participation.
42 competition venues (for the Olympic Games).

Photo: olympics.com

Qualification (as of 18 June 2021)

At this stage, over 88 per cent of athletes, which is more than 9,800 athletes, have already qualified for this summer’s Games.
29 athletes have qualified as part of the IOC’s Refugee Olympic Team for the Toyko 2020 Games.
Qualification has been completed for 34 sports/disciplines, cited Olympics.com.
Over 1,800 athletes from 186 NOCs have been awarded Olympic Solidarity Tokyo 2020 scholarships.

OTR (as of 18 June 2021)

39 prefectures visited.
7,000 torchbearers have run.
0 positive Covid-19 cases in the OTR operation team so far.

What are the specials of this year Olympic Games Tokyo?

Prepare for the robots!

Photo: Turkishairlines

Tech companies in Japan will use the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games as an opportunity to showcase their robot technology! Robots will allegedly be assigned to direct spectators to seats, provide event information, and transport food and other items, cited Turkishairlines.

Robots will be used to guide people to their seats, provide event information, and transport food and other items at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Robots will be used to guide people to their seats, provide event information, and transport food and other items at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Technology to the fullest!

In addition to robots, the Tokyo Olympics will be the first to use a large-scale face recognition system. This system is designed to improve security and speed access to the venue for athletes, officials and press members and other accredited attendees.

Recycled Medals!

2020 Tokyo Olympic Games medals. Photo: olympics.com

Even as the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games introduce new technological features, they also set an example in sustainability. The approximately 5,000 medals planned to be distributed at the Olympics are made from recycled electronic products such as old phones. From more than 78 tons of small electronic devices donated by Japanese citizens, 32 kilograms of gold, 3,500 kilograms of silver and 2,200 kilograms of bronze were extracted, cited Turkishairlines. One side of the medals bears a relief of Nike, the Goddess of Victory, originally drawn by the Italian artist Gossoioli in 1928, holding a wreath of victory; the other bears the Tokyo 2020 Olympics emblem.

The approximately 5,000 medals planned to be distributed at the Tokyo Olympics were made from small electronic products donated by Japanese citizens.

The approximately 5,000 medals planned to be distributed at the Tokyo Olympics were made from small electronic products donated by Japanese citizens.

Why not call it Tokyo 2021?

In announcing the postponement, organizers said they wanted the games to stand as a beacon of hope and the Olympic flame as the “light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present.” It was agreed that the Olympic flame would stay in Japan and the event would keep the name Tokyo 2020. By keeping the name, the IOC also insures that logos, packaging, t-shirts, merchandise and broadcast chyrons remain the same - a cost-saving move for sponsors and partners, cited Bloomberg.

What's happening with Covid-19 in Japan?

A new wave of infections began in April, but overall the country has had relatively low case numbers.

As at 24 June, there have been 789,787 confirmed cases (UK, 4,683,986 cases) and 14,509 deaths (UK, 128,291 deaths).

Japan only began vaccinating people in February, later than most other developed nations.

Only just over 8% of Japan's population of nearly 126 million people is fully vaccinated, reported BBC.

In Tokyo and Osaka, the two cities hit hardest by the recent surge, authorities hope over-65s will be fully vaccinated by the end of July.

Can I go and watch any events?

Entry to Japan by foreigners from 159 countries - including the UK - is currently banned.

No international fans can travel to the games, cited BBC.

Olympic Games Tokyo. Photo: Gettyimages

Up to 10,000 Japanese fans will be permitted to attend, providing crowds do not exceed 50% of a venue's capacity.

Fans won't be allowed to shout or speak loudly. They must wear face masks at all times.

What Covid-19 measures will be in place?

International athletes and support staff will be tested before departure and on arrival in Japan.

They won't necessarily have to quarantine, but must stay in bubbles and avoid mixing with locals.

However, Team GB athletes may have to quarantine, now the UK is on Japan's red travel list.

All UK arrivals, including support staff and members of the media, must self-isolate for six days.

Tokyo 2020 has said no exceptions will be made for athletes, but Team GB says it hopes to resolve the situation. The ruling is due to be reviewed on 1 July, according to BBC.

Athletes also don't have to be vaccinated, though IOC officials expect around 80% will be. Participants will be tested for Covid daily.

Will Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games be canceled?

Organizers have been quick to quash rumors that the Games are set to be canceled, remaining adamant they will go ahead as planned.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has said that decision around canceling the Games rests with the IOC, rather than Japan's government or the local organizing committee.

Tokyo Olympic Stadium. Photo: olympics.com

IOC official Dick Pound has also said that another postponement would be prohibitively expensive for Japan and logistically impossible, especially considering the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are now less than a year away, cited CNN.

The IOC is a non-profit organization and distributes around $3.4 million every day to support athletes and sporting organizations around the world.

The Olympics account for a substantial portion of the IOC's total revenue; between 2013 and 2016, for example -- a period spanning the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics and 2016 Rio Summer Olympics -- the IOC generated a revenue of $5.7 billion.

Close to 75% of the IOC's funding comes from broadcasting rights, meaning the Tokyo Games would generate much-needed revenue, even without fans in attendance, while a cancellation would prove disastrously costly.

The Games have been canceled only on three previous occasions -- in 1916, 1940 and 1944 -- all because of world wars.

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