Whether it was collective relief as against all the odds the world settled down for sixteen days of jam-packed sport, forgetfulness after the exceptionally long five-year wait, or some newfound sense of appreciation, everything seemed to mean that little bit more at the Tokyo Olympics.
Athletes jumped higher and ran faster, cried harder and expressed more freely their stresses and strains, and shared rare embraces, pumped their fists, and tore at their uniforms in scenes of rapturous celebration. Burgeoning rivalries and technological advances led to some historic times out on the athletics track, while records also began to flow in the pool despite the early morning medal sessions. Tokyo introduced skateboarding, surfing, climbing, and karate as Olympic sports, and Bermuda, the Philippines, and Qatar won their first Olympic golds while India, Israel, and the Netherlands returned home boasting their best ever medal tallies.
While Japan quietly excelled in the role of host, the absence of fans owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic turned all of us into first-hand spectators. Mixed emotions heading into the Games gave way to the rawness and immediacy of elite sporting competition. After an unprecedented postponement, now as Tokyo hands over the baton to Paris, these are seven of the best moments from the 2020 Summer Olympics.
* * *
Judo Victory for Naohisa Takato Starts the Gold Rush for Japan
The first gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics came courtesy of Yang Qian, as the Chinese sharpshooter held her nerve up against Anastasiia Galashina of Russia in the women’s 10 metre air rifle final. But even in the absence of fans, the Olympics never truly begin until the hosts hold aloft their first gilded medal.
Japan didn’t have to wait too long, as gold soon began to fall inside the iconic Nippon Budokan, settling local nerves and affording the home nation their first taste of the Olympic spirit. The Budokan, in the Chiyoda ward of the Japanese capital, was built for the inaugural judo competition the last time Tokyo hosted the Summer Olympics back in 1964. One of the world’s premier music venues, it has welcomed acts from The Beatles, ABBA, and Bob Dylan to Prince, Janet Jackson, and BLACKPINK. Rarely then has it borne witness to such wordless celebration.
In the final bout of the first medal session, Naohisa Takato won gold in the men’s 60 kg judo final, scoring via ippon in the Golden Score overtime period. His was the first of nine golds for the host nation in judo competition at the Tokyo Olympics, a fitting haul for the team which styles itself Godzilla Japan. His opponent Yang Yung-wei had to settle for silver, but still became the first athlete from Taiwan to claim an Olympic judo medal.
* * *
Ahmed Hafnaoui Makes a Splash at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre
The slow start to the swimming meet in Tokyo was exemplified by the Tunisian Ahmed Hafnaoui. The 18 year old qualified last for the men’s 400 metre freestyle final, and lined up in lane eight away from the thrust of the action. Perhaps it was a case of out of sight, out of mind for although the unfancied Hafnaoui managed to keep pace with the field, there was still a palpable sense of shock as he came through to touch the wall in first place, narrowly ahead of Australia’s Jack McLoughlin.
Hafnaoui took gold to become only the second Olympic swimming champion from Tunisia, following in the armstrokes of Oussama Mellouli who made African history at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The surprise victory for Hafnaoui and the frenzied response of his family, who were filmed watching the race in a video widely posted on social media, made the young Tunisian one of the stars of the Games and its first true underdog story.
The first few days of swimming inside the Tokyo Aquatics Centre brought stern competition but relatively slow times, with the medal sessions switched to the morning for the sake of NBC television. Gradually the world records flowed in the individual as well as the relay events, starting with Tatjana Schoenmaker in the women’s 200 metre breaststroke. The most successful athletes of the Tokyo Olympics were three swimmers in Caeleb Dressel of the United States and Emma McKeon and Kaylee McKeown of Australia. And while Ariarne Titmus edged the 400 metre freestyle, gold in the distance events entrenched Katie Ledecky’s status as the greatest female swimmer.
* * *
Skateboarding Slides Into the Summer Olympics
With a flip and a kick, skateboarding dropped in to the Ariake Urban Sports Park at the Tokyo Olympics. The debut of the sport proved a boon for the hosts, as a near-flawless nollie 270 noseslide in the fourth trick round of the men’s street event saw Yuto Horigome claim the first ever skateboarding gold medal. It was in the women’s events however that the essence of the sport really shone through, showing the vibrancy of youth and a real spirit of companionship.
At 13 years old, Momiji Nishiya became the youngest gold medalist for Japan with victory in the women’s street event, while Rayssa Leal in silver became the youngest Brazilian Olympian. In the women’s park event, where the focus was on runs rather than individual tricks, the 19-year-old Sakura Yosozumi took gold ahead of the 12-year-old Kokona Hiraki, who became the youngest Olympic medalist in 85 years. Sky Brown in bronze also became Britain’s youngest ever medalist. By contrast the men’s park event paid tribute to two old-timers in Dallas Oberholzer and skateboarding icon Rune Glifberg, who led by example despite bringing up the rear.
The new sports were for the most part a resounding success at the Tokyo Olympics. An impending tropical storm forced a packed schedule for the surfers, but Ćtalo Ferreira and Carissa Moore still rode big waves to victory in the inaugural shortboard competition. And while the sport climbing may have to be reworked if athletes are to excel in their chosen disciplines, the combination of speed climbing, bouldering, and lead climbing in Tokyo proved one of the top-trending events of the Olympics.
* * *
The Philippines and Bermuda Win Their First Gold Medals
While some countries quadrennially hog the medals table, others have been forced to wait for their first piece of gaudiest metal. The Philippines first participated in the Olympics in 1924, while Bermuda made its debut in 1936, and the two countries have participated in every Summer Olympics since except the widely boycotted 1980 event in Moscow. While the Philippines could boast a handful of silver and bronze, Bermuda arrived in Tokyo with only one medal to its name, courtesy of a bronze for Clarence Hill in 1976 in the heavyweight boxing.
That all changed at the Tokyo Olympics. As the first full week of sport got underway, Hidilyn Diaz of the Philippines won gold in the women’s 55 kg weightlifting category, with a successful snatch of 97 kg and a clean and jerk of 127 kg. The clean and jerk and Diaz’s combined total of 224 kg were both new Olympic records. Hours later in torrential conditions, Flora Duffy of Bermuda pulled away in the running leg to take gold in the women’s triathlon. Her total distance of 51.5 kilometres across the swimming, cycling, and running legs was longer than the 40 kilometre strip of her home country.
Bermuda achieved the added feat of becoming the smallest country by population to win gold at a Summer Olympics. A nod then towards San Marino, which became the only smaller country to medal in Tokyo when Alessandra Perilli won bronze in the trap shooting. More success in the mixed trap and men’s freestyle wrestling saw the tiny enclave head home with three Olympic medals.
* * *
Sunisa Lee Shines for Team USA in the Gymnastics
When Simone Biles – perhaps the face of the Tokyo Olympics alongside the tennis star and torchbearer Naomi Osaka – withdrew from the artistic team all-around after the first rotation, it served as one of the upsets of the Games while tempering some of the spotlight. Besieged from all sides, an inordinate amount of pressure plus a case of the twisties as she lost her way mid-vault caused Biles to pull out of most of her scheduled events during the course of the Olympics. The fate of American gymnastics in Tokyo was left to rest on other shoulders.
A solid but unspectacular opening from the team which has dominated modern gymnastics left the United States trailing in the team all-around competition. Instead the Russian Olympic Committee barely put a foot out of place, finishing with the best combined scores in the vault, the uneven bars, and the floor exercise to secure gold medal position. It was the first victory for Russian athletes in the women’s team all-around since the dissolution of the Unified Team in 1992, and Lilia Akhaimova, Viktoria Listunova, Angelina Melnikova, and Vladislava Urazova joined their male compatriots on the podium, who one day earlier had edged out Japan at the end of an emotional contest.
Success for the United States came a couple of days later through Sunisa Lee, who claimed victory in the artistic individual all-around after Rebeca Andrade bounced out of bounds twice during her final floor routine. Of Hmong descent, Lee became the fifth consecutive American to win gold in the individual all-around, while Andrade became the first Brazilian gymnast to medal at an Olympics. Not content with silver, Andrade took gold in the vault, and there were victories for Nina Derwael on the uneven bars and Jade Carey in the floor exercise, before Simone Biles returned to celebrate bronze on the balance beam as Guan Chenchen and Tang Xijing made it a Chinese double.
* * *
Mutaz Barshim and Gianmarco Tamberi Share Gold in the High Jump
Elaine Thompson doubled up once more to retain Olympic gold in the 100 and 200 metre sprints, while Sifan Hassan scored an unprecedented distance treble. Karsten Warholm and Sydney McLaughlin tore down barriers in the 400 metre hurdles, and Yulimar Rojas put a longstanding world record to bed in the women’s triple jump. But the singular moment of the athletics meet, certain to be replayed at every subsequent Olympics, came in the closely contested final of the men’s high jump.
As challengers like Ilya Ivanyuk, Mikhail Akimenko, and JuVaughn Harrison fell by the wayside, Woo Sang-hyeok and Maksim Nedasekau were among the athletes who kept raising the bar, setting and equalling their national records. But it was two familiar faces in Gianmarco Tamberi and Mutaz Essa Barshim who managed clear cards all the way up to season’s best heights of 2.37.
Barshim finished second at the Rio Olympics, but took solace in world championship gold in London then in front of a home crowd in Doha. Meanwhile a career-threatening injury ruled Tamberi out of the Rio Games, and he remained best known for his half-shaven face as he embarked on the comeback trail. In Tokyo the close friends proved inseparable, flawless before three failures at 2.39 left them in a tie for the gold medal. Rather than face a jump-off, the two men opted to share gold, as Tamberi leapt into Barshim’s arms, prefiguring a week of triumph for Italy. The moment encapsulated the spirit of camaraderie which came to define the Tokyo Olympics.
* * *
Allyson Felix Becomes the Most Decorated American Track Athlete
On the track and beyond, from the football pitch and basketball court to the rowing venue and cycling velodrome, many of the stars of the Tokyo Olympics were mothers. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, one of the greatest sprinters of all-time, added more medals to her tally in the relay and individual sprints, while Brittney Reese came tantalisingly close to gold in the long jump. But it was Allyson Felix who set a new benchmark for athletics, a couple of years after giving birth and changing the face of the sport by forcing Nike to change its outdated maternity policy.
With bronze in the 400 metres, Felix became the most decorated female Olympian the history of track athletics. When she followed that up with gold alongside Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, and Athing Mu in the 4 x 400 metre relay, her tally of eleven Olympic medals saw her stretch past Carl Lewis for the title of most decorated American track athlete.
The last few days of action in Tokyo were full of historic feats. Lisa Carrington won her sixth medal in the canoe, including three golds during the course of the Games, to become New Zealand’s most decorated Olympian. Gold alongside Katie Archibald in the first-ever women’s Madison made Laura Kenny the most gilded British woman and the most successful female cyclist in Olympic history. And her husband Jason Kenny kept up appearances in the Keirin, where his seventh gold made him the most decorated British Olympian, giving the couple a sackful of medals to take back home to their son Albie.
