Six months after the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics and Para Games Host Town Due to the difficulty of the desired exchange, September 24, 20:11
It has been six months since the one-year postponement of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics was decided.
In "Host Town", which accepts pre-camps in each country and conducts exchange programs, the desired form of exchange is not possible due to the postponement of the tournament and the spread of infection.
One of the host towns, Shiroishi City, Miyagi Prefecture, has been accepting pre-camps for the Belarusian national team, which is known as a rhythmic gymnastics powerhouse, for three years.
In order to provide athletes with a practice environment that is close to the actual performance, the city has spent millions of yen preparing mats from the same manufacturer as the mats used at the Tokyo tournament, but this time the pre-camp was canceled and the mats It has never been used and remains in the city gymnasium.
It is expected that additional expenses will be incurred if a preliminary training camp is held next year.
In addition, Belarusian athletes have been familiar to the public by showing their performances every time they visit the training camp, but all the planned exchange projects have been cancelled.
A first-year junior high school girl who attends a local rhythmic gymnastics club said, "The players were like our model. I think it can't be helped because of the influence of Corona, but I have a strong desire to see the performance. That's it. "
Isao Kusaka (86), who teaches at the rhythmic gymnastics club, said, "The stunning performances of the athletes changed the children's consciousness and led to improvement. Not only sports, but also each other's culture. There was also interaction in terms of it, so I hope it will continue in the future without interruption. "
In Shiroishi City, we will consider the future while paying close attention to the simplification of the competition and discussions on measures against the new coronavirus.
Koji Hashiyada, director of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics Promotion Office in Shiroishi City, said, "As a host town, we have been working on the idea that the experience of directly seeing the performances of world-class athletes and the interaction that will continue to the next generation will be legacy. It is a difficult situation to foster the feelings of the citizens, as players cannot come and cannot go, but I would like to continue to interact with them in the future. "
Interact with former Ethiopian national team runners in Kasama City, Ibaraki Prefecture
In Kasama City, Ibaraki Prefecture, which is the host town of Ethiopia, the runners who were the representatives of Ethiopia for the marathon continue to give guidance to children and continue their activities to keep in touch.
Kasama City, Ibaraki Prefecture, is the host town for three countries and regions: Ethiopia, Thailand, and Taiwan.
In particular, we have been interacting with Ethiopia for more than 10 years. I have come.
Mekonen was said to be a gold medal candidate at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, but he was unable to stand on the stage of the Olympics during peak times as an active player because Ethiopia did not participate.
From this experience, Mekonen said, "The Olympics are important for both athletes and the country. I strongly hope that they will be held next year." He urges us to avoid canceling the Olympics.
Meanwhile, Kasama City has also decided to extend Mekonen's term, which was scheduled for one year until last month, for the time being.
In addition to having Mekonen continue to interact with the children, we will also ask him to help with preparations if he decides to accept a training camp as a host town in the future.
Nobuo Toyoda, director of the Kasama City Olympic and Paralympic Promotion Office, said, "I was very surprised that it was postponed, but I would like to do it little by little so that exchanges will continue after the Olympics next year."
Mr. Mekonen also said that the extension of his term was "good for me, and I think that the relationship between the Olympics and Kasama City will be even better if the exchange continues."
Volunteer "I want to believe in the event and prepare for it"
At the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, about 110,000 volunteers are supposed to guide the audience, but the spread of the new coronavirus infection has been affected by the online training.
Some people are looking forward to the tournament and are preparing for it, even though it has been postponed.
Of these, Norio Hasegawa (66) from Machida City, Tokyo, was excited to expect that volunteering would give him a unique opportunity to interact with people from all over the world visiting Japan.
He said he was disappointed when he heard that it was "postponed," but after that, he changed his mind and learned how to support spectators from all over the world through online training.
In addition to training, Mr. Hasegawa has a daily routine of learning English speaking and listening for 30 minutes a day to improve his language skills.
In addition, he does not lack strength, and he continues to do 40 push-ups, 30 squats, yoga and an hour of walking every day.
This is because I thought that I would use my physical strength at the tournament held in midsummer.
Mr. Hasegawa said, "I hope it will be a tournament where people can connect and enjoy each other across national borders. I believe in next year's event and will have fun preparing for it."