The modern Olympic Games or Olympics are leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games are considered the world’s foremost sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. The Olympic Games are normally held every four years, alternating between the Summer and Winter Olympics every two years in the four years. The 2020 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXXII Olympiad and branded as Tokyo 2020, is an international multi-sport event. The story is indeed sad when the Covid-19 Pandemic devoured the entire earth. Eventually, the Tokyo Olympics 2020 being the event victim to come through this unprecedented time.
The actual event fell from 24th July to 9th August 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. However, it has been pushed forward from 23rd July to 8th August 2021. Following this, the Paralympics will take place from 24th August to 5th September 2021. Although the event is postponed by a year, it preserves the name Tokyo 2020 for marketing and branding purposes. The act of rescheduling the Olympics is the first time in history instead of canceling it. 85,000 athletes are representing 205 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and the Refugee Olympic Teams.
THE HOST CITY
Tokyo is chosen as the host city for the 2020 Olympics, marking the second time for hosting the Summer Olympics. It so happened during the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 7th September 2013. Japan witnessed a total of four Olympics including the Winter Olympics in 1972 in Sapporo and 1998 in Nagano. It is also the second city in East Asia out of three consecutive Olympics, Pyeongchang being the first and the next in Beijing, 2022.
Where is the Tokyo Olympics venue?
There are 42 different venues for the various competitions for the Tokyo Olympics 2020. Most of them are located within the city, while other additional events will be held anywhere else in Japan. The Heritage Zone, the Tokyo Bay Zone, and other outlying venues are the chief divisions of the venues. Additionally, the Olympics Village is set up between the two zones. The Olympic Stadium in the Heritage Zone will host the Opening, Closing ceremonies, soccer, track and field events. The zone has a total of 10 venues at the heart of the city. The Tokyo Bay Zone will represent the traditional Tokyo, and thus it is an innovative Heritage Zone counterpart. The area has several artificial islands with futuristic environments. It consists of sixteen spots for the Summer Olympic events. Out of them, it includes the Ariake Gymnastics Center and the Tokyo Aquatic Centre. Another 16 outlying venues are outside the two main zones. In particular, Sapporo will host marathons, race walking, and other events.
History of Olympics
The Olympic Games, which originated in ancient Greece as many as 3,000 years ago, were revived in the late 19th century and have become the world’s preeminent sporting competition. From the 8th century B.C. to the 4th century A.D., the Games were held every four years in Olympia, located in the western Peloponnese peninsula, in honor of the god Zeus. The first modern Olympics took place in 1896 in Athens, and featured 280 participants from 12 nations, competing in 43 events. In the ancient Olympic Games, there were no gold, silver, and bronze medals. There was only one winner per event and they were crowned with an olive wreath made of wild olive leaves. The leaves were taken from a sacred tree that grew near the temple of Zeus at Olympia in Greece.
WHAT IS NEW IN THE 2020 TOKYO OLYMPICS?
Olympics over the years overwhelms everyone with myriads of games and sports. The Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics is no different from such spectacular events. New sports in the events include 3×3 basketball, freestyle BMX, and Madison Cycling with other added mixed events. The new policy of IOC allows the host organizing committee to add new sports. The new policy also gives a chance to shift the event not only to focus on ‘sport based’ but also ‘event based’. As a consequence, the event will see five new games consisting of baseball/softball, karate, sport climbing, surfing, and skateboarding. The Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics will host 33 sports at 339 events all across 42 venues. Following, the Paralympics will feature 22 sports at 539 events across 21 venues.
Fun Facts of Tokyo Olympics 2020
The youngest participant in these Games is the 12-year-old tennis player Hend Zaza from Syria
The oldest one is an Australian equestrian, aged 66.
Japan’s Tokyo 2020 has unveiled its Olympic medals made from recycled mobile phones
The stunning torch used for the Tokyo Olympic Torch Relay was designed to resemble cherry blossoms – a renowned symbol of Japan. The relay began in March this year to coincide with the cherry blossom season and has traveled all across Japan
The Olympic and Paralympic mascots were chosen by 16,769 elementary school children who voted on their favorite designs. The Olympic mascot, known as Miraitowa, is designed with the classic Japanese indigo blue. The Paralympic mascot, on the other hand, is known as Someity, which features the same pink as Japan’s famous cherry blossoms. 
At least one color of the Olympic Rings appears in every national flag.
In the long history of the Summer Olympics, only five countries have been represented at every edition of the Games. They are Greece, Great Britain, France, Switzerland, and Australia
Olympic medals are not the only awards given to athletes. Also, at the main host stadium, the names of the medal winners are written on a wall
Written by: Rtr. Gihindu Perera
Edited by: Rtr. Loshini Gnanasambanthan
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