It became a toned-down, stripped-down show – a Japanese specialty even when the coronavirus is not ravaging.
When the whole inauguration began with only three people and a treadmill, an exercise bike and a rowing machine on the entire inner plane, it set the tone.
It is probably about as lonely as the Olympians have felt on their way to these competitions during the pandemic.
Many withdrew to attend Friday night.
The Swedish handball player Emma Lindqvist summed up the situation the day before the inauguration, in which she did not want to participate:
“It would be incredibly sad to be isolated because someone else is infected, when you yourself are not infected,” she said.
She escaped. Many other active members were also absent.
Sweden came in on arena with a minimal squad. From high up in the stands, just over a dozen Swedes could be seen.
It is not the infection itself that scares Olympians the most in this situation. And that helped keep them away from the inauguration. There is a risk of being registered by the phone’s health app as close contact with someone who has tested positive.
– Field competition rider Sara Algotsson and sailor Max Salminen were Swedish flag bearers during the inauguration
Photo: Jon Olav Nesvold / Bildbyrån
This leads to isolation, a major disruption in the preparations – and can of course also mean a positive test for oneself and missed Olympic start.
Another cooling factor was the empty stands.
The inauguration is usually something that makes Olympians on the inside pick up the phone and film to remember the festive moment.
One or two now filmed the empty stands, as a personal document of what a strange Olympics they participate in. However, it was not particularly festive.
Because the trail does not would look too thin had leaders been called in instead. But as far as – as one or two jokes suggested in the Olympic village – to call in Japanese officials to fill the clothes of different nations did not work. The troops that entered the arena, on the other hand, were, just like Sweden’s, considerably smaller than usual.
When Tokyo won the hosting eight years ago in 2020, then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the Olympics would be a symbol of the triumph over the terrible disaster of 2011 with an earthquake, followed by a tsunami and a crash at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
The effect has become different.
Once Tokyo hosted the Olympic Games, major investments began in the capital. All construction jobs have been concentrated here. The money then disappeared from northeastern Japan, where reconstruction in recent years has been very slow. The Olympic Games have therefore accelerated the uneven development between Tokyo and the rest of Japan.
– Fireworks over the Olympic Stadium.
Foto: Dave Shopland/Shutterstock
The past year has the Olympics instead turned into a symbol of global efforts to overcome the pandemic.
The Japanese people have not bought that message. According to the latest opinion poll, two thirds of the population are against the event taking place. Protests took place outside the stadium during the inauguration, but were not heard
Emperor Naruhito’s choice of words when he opened the games has been weighed on a gold scale this week.
He finally omitted the word celebration, which is usually used, and instead said to celebrate the events that are now being decided during the ongoing pandemic.
– The Japanese emperor Naruhito weighed his words in gold during the Olympic inauguration.
Photo: Jewel Samad/AFP
That the Japanese government and the Olympic organizers in this way planned to refrain from a jubilant expression has been one of the biggest news in Japan during the week.
Another has been that major Japanese Olympic sponsors are trying to parry the popular opposition. The car manufacturer Toyota, a long-time Olympic partner, announced the other day that the company will not broadcast any TV commercials that are connected to the games. Crisis management meant that the company’s CEO was absent from Friday’s inauguration.
The authorities and organizers also do not believe in the message of a victory over the coronavirus. The empty stands without paying spectators say it all.
The active have something to think about. They would have liked the audience in the back, but the medals will be valued as highly as usual.
For Tokyo as an Olympic organizer it was easier to succeed in 1964 than today. 57 years ago, the Olympics were a symbol of Japan’s return after World War II that had devastated the country. The new Shinkansen express train had been built to Kyoto and was going at a world record speed. New highways and a new sewer system were ready. Computers were used for the first time in an Olympics and the clock could begin to differentiate competitors by a margin of one hundredth of a second.
– Naomi Osaka ended the torch relay by lighting the Olympic flame.
Photo: Hannah McKay/AFP
Increased income in society was used in 1964 by Japanese families to buy a television and watch the Olympics. The future only looked bright.
In 2021, the situation is different. Japan no longer beats the inferior, but has a lot to defend. The population that was young in 1964 has grown old. It has been declining since 2010. The economy has been stagnant for three decades.
Crisis management is probably what Tokyo can best show the world during the Olympics. If a major outbreak is prevented, the host city must be satisfied.
Dressed sparingly, so was the inauguration.
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