Tokyo 2020

[JustKelli]

Summer Olympics



The summer Olympics begin one year from today as the world's finest athletes will gather to compete and I for one can hardly wait. Yes there will be controversy and naysayers but that notwithstanding these games are a way for our youth to excel as they move through life.

There are many competitions underway as far as qualifying to compete in the games with your countries finest. Canada's sweethearts are currently killing it in the pool with 2 gold 2 silver and 3 bronze. Swimming/diving are my favorite events although the 100 and 200 meter dash are the premier events of all games ... high jump is pretty cool too.

I will add to this thread as news flows in and come the games opening I will provide all podium results as I wish all world class athletes the best of success.

[JustKelli]

Tokyo unveils 2020 Olympic medals harvested from old gadgets


It’s exactly one year until the Games get under way

After successfully collecting enough unused gadgets to extract the required amount of precious metals, the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee has revealed its Olympic medal designs exactly one year before the Games are set to start. The medals were designed by Junichi Kawanishi, who won a competition that drew entries from more than 400 professional designers and design students.

The medals are all 85mm in diameter, measuring 7.7mm at their thinnest part and 12.1mm at their thickest. The gold medals use more than 6 grams of gold plating on pure silver, the silver medals are made from pure silver, and the bronze medals use a red brass alloy made up of 95-percent copper and 5-percent zinc. IOC regulations mandated that the design should include the iconic five rings symbol, the official name of the games, and the Greek goddess of victory Nike in front of the Panatheniac stadium.

The Tokyo 2020 organizing committee launched a two-year campaign in April 2017 to collect donated electronic devices from members of the public in order to harvest the necessary metals. 78,895 tons of gadgets were received in total, including 6.21 million mobile phones, and this resulted in the extraction of 32kg of gold, 3,500kg of silver, and 2,200kg of bronze.

[JustKelli]

A worker sprays water over sand to cool it down July 26 during a test event at Shiokaze Park, a venue for beach volleyball at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Deadly heat wave in Japan renews concerns for 2020 Summer Olympics

A heat wave that reportedly killed at least 11 people and sent thousands more to hospitals in Japan last week has renewed concerns about conditions during the*2020 Tokyo Olympics*next summer.

Government officials are blaming a sudden rise in temperatures following the end of the rainy season, the Kyodo News reported. Of the 5,664 who sought treatment, slightly more than half were 65 or older.

The Games will take place in late July and early August, a period that can be particularly sweltering. Last year, heat caused the government to declare a natural disaster.

“We observed the highest temperatures recorded in many cities across the country,” Tokyo 2020 spokesman Masa Takaya said during an interview at organizing committee headquarters earlier this month. “We are not optimistic about the summer weather in Tokyo at all.”

Organizers are collaborating with government agencies and corporate sponsors on a “cooling project” that will seek countermeasures to promote “the comfort and safety of athletes, spectators, officials and volunteers.”

“We haven’t been able to announce the details of the plan yet, but each company has its own unique way to contribute to heat issues,” Takaya said. “Like, a sweets company would be able to supply ice cream. Or a pharmaceutical company would be able to provide cooling pads.”

In other Olympic news, Tokyo 2020 released its*schedule for boxing, a sport that Olympic leaders had considered dropping amid ongoing controversy.

The International Olympic Committee has suspended the sport’s governing federation and appointed a task force to oversee next summer’s tournament.

[ILMCS]

So heat is a concern, but the fact that around 1,2 active/retired athletes die of drug/doping abuse every week, is not.

[JustKelli]

Originally Posted by ILMCS

So heat is a concern, but the fact that around 1,2 active/retired athletes die of drug/doping abuse every week, is not.

I am quite sure that that is of concern but not a topic for the immediate Games themselves and a lot is being done in the background to stop this drug use/abuse that is mainly because of "east block" countries having for the most part created the problem in the first place with their win at any cost mentality.

One of the worlds most advanced drug testing labs is here and I know for a fact that they take this subject very seriously and the day athletes aren't able to work the system is the day we start to see things change.

Thank you for the post voicing your concerns.

[JustKelli]

The Olympics are not all shits and giggles as was shown by the drug comment above and after doing a deep dive on the net I found some startling facts and the biggest one being that if anyone EVER awards another Olympics to Greece, those responsible should be lined up and shot. Of the 40 most abandoned venues in modern history over half are from Greece 2004 where it is like q graveyard as they simply walked away from them and left to rot.

We had the Winter Olympics here in 1988 and every venue has been maintained and used for international events and training alike and they bring in millions in revenue annually as well as supporting tourism. We had the sense to recently vote down a 2026 bid that would have been cost prohibitive but it's still all about the money to most.

Here are some of history's biggest fuckups ...

#1*and #3 Bobsleigh Track, Sarajevo, 1984 Winter Olympics

[JustKelli]

Here are some from Athens 2004 ... so fucking sad!!!!!

[JustKelli]

I forgot the softball stadium in Athens. China and Atlanta you should take a bow to.

Olympic Mascots Lie Unwanted, Beijing, 2008 Summer Olympics not to mention numerous facilities. Finally the tennis venue in Atlanta 96

[JustKelli]

I guess the question is do we still need the Olympics?

YES, but not the politics that go with them ...

[JustKelli]

Japanese Olympic chief indicted in France, suspected of corruption

By**Euronews**•*11/01/2019

Copyright

Reuters

The head of Japan's Olympic Committee, Tsunekazu Takeda, has been indicted in France on corruption allegations, Paris' financial prosecutor's office spokesperson confirmed to Euronews.

Following a request from France, Japanese prosecutors questioned Takeda back in 2017 over his knowledge of suspect payments made by the Tokyo Olympic bid team to a Singaporean company headed by Ian Tan Tong Hong, who has close ties with the son of former International Association of Athletics Federation president Lamine Diack.

Diack was at the centre of a number of corruption scandals during his tenure as IAAF president.

The investigation into the payments made before Tokyo won the 2020 Olympic bid was launched by French authorities in 2016.

According to*Japan's Kyodo news, Takeda at the time denied having any knowledge of illegitimacy in the payments, which were made as part of several contracts in total costing more than $2 million (€1.7 million).

However, Takeda was indicted in Paris last month, Reuters reported.

Who is Tsunekazu Takeda?

A descendant of Japanese royalty, Takeda is the great-grandson of Emporer Meiji, who ruled from 1867 to 1912, and is known for leading the country to westernisation during his reign.

Takeda has a long history with the Olympics Games, having himself competed in the 1972 and 1976 Games as a show jumper, and later coaching Japan's Olympic equestrian team.

He became President of the*Japanese Olympic Committee in 2001*and was subsequently elected for 10 consecutive 2-year terms, with the last re-election taking place in July 2017.

A respected member of the committee,*the JOC was prepared*to extend their retirement age beyond the 70-years-old threshold to allow Takeda to remain president until after the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.