The 2020/2021 Tokyo Olympics : Does Japan get the gold medal or the wooden spoon?
(2023) In Contemporary Japan 35(1). p.16-34- Abstract
- The Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics will go down in history as the 'Pandemic Games'. Postponed by a year due to Covid-19, they were eventually held despite broad public protest and amidst the Delta variant wave. Japan brought home a record haul of medals, yet Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide resigned in ignominy shortly after the Games ended. So, was Tokyo 2020/2021 a 'success' or a 'failure', and for whom? We examine the policy and politics of the Games, considering the attribution of 'success' and 'failure' to the Olympics across a range of issues, actors, and narratives. Reviewing their economic, public health, soft power, and political impact, we find that the Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics remain deeply ambiguous. Prime Minister Abe Shinzō’s vision... (More)
- The Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics will go down in history as the 'Pandemic Games'. Postponed by a year due to Covid-19, they were eventually held despite broad public protest and amidst the Delta variant wave. Japan brought home a record haul of medals, yet Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide resigned in ignominy shortly after the Games ended. So, was Tokyo 2020/2021 a 'success' or a 'failure', and for whom? We examine the policy and politics of the Games, considering the attribution of 'success' and 'failure' to the Olympics across a range of issues, actors, and narratives. Reviewing their economic, public health, soft power, and political impact, we find that the Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics remain deeply ambiguous. Prime Minister Abe Shinzō’s vision of a proud, 'reborn' Japan showcasing itself to the world obviously did not come to pass; neither did the promise of a 'Recovery Olympics' aiding in the reconstruction of the post-3/11 Tohoku region. Conversely, the predictions of a COVID-19 catastrophe, of even an 'Olympic variant', also failed to transpire. Rather, the Olympics became a pared-down event forced through by vested interests, notably the IOC and Dentsu. The political fallout was contained by one-party dominance in Japan’s democracy, where even a forced mega-event during a pandemic was insufficient to threaten the Liberal Democratic Party’s stranglehold on power. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/2a2d7d8a-bdbf-460e-be4d-1485dec23925
- author
- O'shea, Paul LU and Maslow, Sebastian
- organization
- publishing date
- 2023
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Contemporary Japan
- volume
- 35
- issue
- 1
- pages
- 16 - 34
- publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85153786492
- ISSN
- 1869-2737
- DOI
- 10.1080/18692729.2023.2169819
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 2a2d7d8a-bdbf-460e-be4d-1485dec23925
- date added to LUP
- 2023-03-16 14:09:29
- date last changed
- 2023-07-14 09:28:00
@article{2a2d7d8a-bdbf-460e-be4d-1485dec23925, abstract = {{The Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics will go down in history as the 'Pandemic Games'. Postponed by a year due to Covid-19, they were eventually held despite broad public protest and amidst the Delta variant wave. Japan brought home a record haul of medals, yet Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide resigned in ignominy shortly after the Games ended. So, was Tokyo 2020/2021 a 'success' or a 'failure', and for whom? We examine the policy and politics of the Games, considering the attribution of 'success' and 'failure' to the Olympics across a range of issues, actors, and narratives. Reviewing their economic, public health, soft power, and political impact, we find that the Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics remain deeply ambiguous. Prime Minister Abe Shinzō’s vision of a proud, 'reborn' Japan showcasing itself to the world obviously did not come to pass; neither did the promise of a 'Recovery Olympics' aiding in the reconstruction of the post-3/11 Tohoku region. Conversely, the predictions of a COVID-19 catastrophe, of even an 'Olympic variant', also failed to transpire. Rather, the Olympics became a pared-down event forced through by vested interests, notably the IOC and Dentsu. The political fallout was contained by one-party dominance in Japan’s democracy, where even a forced mega-event during a pandemic was insufficient to threaten the Liberal Democratic Party’s stranglehold on power.}}, author = {{O'shea, Paul and Maslow, Sebastian}}, issn = {{1869-2737}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{1}}, pages = {{16--34}}, publisher = {{Taylor & Francis}}, series = {{Contemporary Japan}}, title = {{The 2020/2021 Tokyo Olympics : Does Japan get the gold medal or the wooden spoon?}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/18692729.2023.2169819}}, doi = {{10.1080/18692729.2023.2169819}}, volume = {{35}}, year = {{2023}}, }