The biggest sporting competition globally, the Olympics, finally started Friday, July 23, 2021. The Tokyo Olympics had been postponed from 2020 due to the Covid-19 outbreak that affected all sports competitions in the world.

At the Tokyo Olympic Stadium, the opening of this sporting event will see a parade of athletes from the countries involved. A total of 206 countries are competing in Tokyo, with more than 11,000 athletes from various sports.

Before we enjoy this biggest sporting event, there are some interesting facts from the holding of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. For starters, the Olympics have been held for 124 years since being held in 1896. This year's Olympics are the first time in modern history; this quadrennial sporting event has been delayed due to the pandemic.

The first Olympic event involved 241 athletes who were all white men. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, there are 11,500 athletes, half of whom are women representing 200 countries. In addition, this year's Olympics also allows female athletes who are breastfeeding to compete.

 

 

 

 

 

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Most interesting are skateboarding, surfing, sport climbing, and karate which were officially held for the first time. Many of the athletes in these sports are grateful to experience the Olympic stage after previously only competing in international championships.

As of July 1, 106 people who have accreditation to participate in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics have failed to leave because they have tested positive for Covid-19. Many also have to bury their dreams due to funding difficulties due to the pandemic in their respective countries.

Indonesia sent 28 athletes to the Tokyo Olympics, consisting of 16 male athletes and 12 female athletes. The sports that will be followed by Indonesian athletes are weightlifting, athletics, badminton, rowing, shooting, archery, swimming, and surfing. The most significant contingent comes from badminton which will compete in all classes, namely men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles, with 11 athletes.

Opening ceremony

Tokyo 2020 Olympics officially opened with a simple show. Present as guests of honour were Japanese Emperor Naruhito, French President Emmanuel Macron, and US First Lady Jill Biden. The 68,000-seater stadium was left empty because the Olympic committee had banned spectators from viewing live. This is related to concerns that the sporting event could cause an increase in the number of Covid-19 sufferers.

After opening with fireworks and dancing, some exciting details from the opening ceremony include the Olympic logo made of wood. Organizers said the wood came from tree seeds brought by international athletes during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

 

 

 

 

 

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For game fans, this Olympics opening ceremony will bring a feeling of nostalgia. The Olympic committee played songs from the famous games as contingents of countries entered the stadium. Some of the songs include Dragon Quest “Overture: Roto's Theme”, Final Fantasy “Victory Fanfare”, Tales of series “Sorey's Theme - The Shepherd”, Monster Hunter “Proof of a Hero”, Kingdom Hearts “Olympus Coliseum”, and Chrono Trigger “Frog's Theme”.

Each participant entered the stadium with a flag bearer at the front. Surf athlete Rio Waida had the opportunity to become the Indonesian flag bearer, accompanied by lifter Nurul Akmal, swimmers Aflah Fadlan Prawira, and Azzahra Permatahani.

The clothes worn by the Indonesian contingent also looked different with the mixed Indonesian-Japanese designs. Rio wears traditional Balinese clothes, Payas Madya, and traditional Japanese sandals. Other Indonesian athletes were dressed in white shirts and pants, red underwear, white shoes with red laces and red and white masks.

The event will last for two weeks and will compete for 339 medals from 50 numbers from various sports. Several branches have already started matches, including football, volleyball, and basketball.