Azusa Iwashimizu, a member of Japan's women's national soccer team, was the first to carry the torch
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The Tokyo Olympics took its first tentative step towards becoming a reality on Thursday morning, with the launch of the nationwide torch relay from the disaster-hit Fukushima region.
A catalogue of obstacles have plagued organisers since the Games were postponed for a year last summer due to the coronavirus pandemic, from sinking public support to resignations, prompting widespread speculation as to whether the event would go ahead.
The challenges continued on Wednesday when a string of celebrities and top-level athletes pulled out as bearers of the flame, which was flown in from Greece last year, at just a day’s notice.
However, the torch launch went ahead as planned, with only athletes, officials and performers gathered at Fukushima’s J-Village, which was famously used as a base for workers decommissioning the nearby nuclear power plant following the 2011 disaster.
During a brief opening ceremony, which even the prime minister skipped attending in person, Seiko Hashimoto, Tokyo 2020 president, said: “For the past year, as the entire world underwent a difficult period, the Olympic flame was kept alive quietly but powerfully.
The lighting ceremony celebrated Japanese culture
Credit: EPA
“The small flame did not lose hope, and just like the cherry blossom buds that are ready to bloom, it was waiting for this day.”
The low-key event, streamed live but closed to the public, began around 9am local time (12am GMT), with children singing in a choir, hula dancers and a taiko drum performance on a stage with ikebana flower arrangements.
Members of Japan’s national women’s soccer team, dressed in red and white tracksuits, then lit the rose-gold coloured Olympic torch, marking the official start of the 121-day relay.
The torch, created by designer Yoshioka Tokujin, was inspired by a sakura cherry blossom and made from recycled aluminum from temporary housing used in the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake.
Celebrations along the route were muted
Credit: REUTERS
The torchbearers, escorted by staff, proceeded to jog out of J-village where they were greeted by just a handful of spectators sedately lining the roads, as the flame began its journey across Japan.
The opening event was a far cry from the original plan of thousands of cheering fans, which authorities hoped would cast a spotlight on Fukushima and its recovery since the 2011 nuclear disaster.
However, residents were still hopeful that the choice of location would show the world that despite halting efforts to revitalise the area, it is no “nuclear wasteland”.
Lighting the cauldron marks the start of the torch relay
Credit: EPA
“I think it’s very meaningful that the relay will start from Fukushima 10 years after the disaster,” Hanae Nojiri, a reporter with a local TV station who will take part in the relay, told AFP.
Around 10,000 runners will now carry the torch through Japan’s 47 prefectures, across mountains and far-flung islands, during the four-month event which counts down to the Opening Ceremony on July 23 at the national stadium in Tokyo.
While no spectators were allowed during the first section of the relay, onlookers can gather throughout the rest of the torch’s nationwide tour so long as they wear masks, avoid cheering and socially distance.
Hiromi Kawamura, who oversees the relay, described how organisers have tackled “some crazy days” in the countdown, due to rapidly shifting landscape of an evolving pandemic situation and complex government negotiations.
Protesters gathered outside the Japanese embassy in Seoul, South Korea
Credit: AP
“We’re asking people not to stand shoulder-to-shoulder,” he said. “If it gets really crowded… if we feel the situation is dangerous, we’ll suspend the relay. Then we’ll start it again after we’ve made the area safe.”
The torch relay kicks off just days after a state of emergency in Tokyo and other areas was lifted, following a third wave of infections that pushed Japan’s coronavirus numbers to a record high.
While Japan’s coronavirus infection rates have been significantly lower than many other regions, the majority of the public are against the Games being held due to safety concerns and soaring expenses.
However, Tokyo 2020 organisers remained adamant that sufficient preparations had been undertaken and insisted the event would go ahead as planned, albeit without overseas spectators.
“I’m certain we can hold an Olympics that will be safe and secure for both the participants and the public,” Toshiro Muto, Tokyo 2020 CEO, told a press conference on the eve of the torch relay.
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