2016 Tokyo Olympics?
In 1964, the Summer Olympics were held in Tokyo. What I did not realize until about 15 seconds ago (thanks Wikipedia) is that my own hometown of Detroit was somehow in the running for the bid. The Motor City finished a distant second. Thank goodness, too. Though hosting an international competition might have helped Detroit preserve its prestige as a top American city rather than devolve into the depressing cesspool it has become, the ‘64 games gave Japan a chance to showcase how far along it had come since WWII. Held in October (summer, huh?), the summer games featured the usual dogfight between the U.S. and Soviet Union in overall success (the Capitalists had more gold, the Comrades had more medals) as well as host Japan nabbing a respectable fourth-place finish, complete with 16 gold trinkets to wear. The ‘64 Olympic Games were groundbreaking; it was the first time the event was held in Asia. That helped paved the way for Seoul’s 1988 Olympics (in which boxer Roy Jones, Jr. was robbed of a gold; I still can’t discuss it without tears welling up) and this year’s games in Beijing.
What’s the point, you ask? As usual, there is none. No, wait. There is. (Inner monologue ending …) Tokyo again finds itself in contention to host an Olympics. Other than the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, when the U.S. hockey team showed its pride by trashing the tatami quarters they were housed in, Japan has been waiting to get another crack at the worldwide stage. Our fair home is now in contention for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Yep, that’s eight years from now. But in this game, you have to start early. So can the city pull it off? Let’s take a look …
FACILITIES
The Good: Tokyo has plenty of stadiums and buildings left over from the ‘64 Games. National Stadium, Yoyogi Park and Budokan are still available, and no doubt the city would sink money into new building projects to ensure that its state-of-the-art reputation is intact.
The Bad: No matter how much you renovate a 44-year-old building, it’s still going to be old. And can Tokyo really squeeze any more buildings into its already bursting metropolis?
The Ugly: Have you seen some of the leftover buildings? I’m not Howard Roark, but even I can spot a lame architectural design.
TRANSPORTATION
The Good: By 2016, visitors will likely be impressed that Tokyo’s extensive trains and subways are still safe, cheap and convenient. Or maybe we can all take our rocket cars. Who knows? Both Narita and Haneda, though small airports, would suffice for international travel.
The Bad: For one, crowds. Japan is not China. It will not ship all the homeless and working poor to another part of the country in an effort to sweep crap under the rug. So people will be clogging every nook and cranny in the city come Olympics time.
The Ugly: Picture this: The Yamanote Line trains filled to the gills with drunk Japanese and Korean fans hot on the heels of a Japan victory in baseball.
ACCOMMODATION
The Good: Lots of hotels. This is an international city, so no surprise there. Probably not the cheapest place to stay for a week or two, but there should be sufficient availability for early birds. Mama-san at the ryokan better bust out the sweepin’ broom, too.
The Bad: Pricey and small. The average Westerner has a lot of extra, shall we say, “girth,” than the average Japanese person. So when Big Tom, his wife, Jeannie, and the hefty children open the door to their two-bed hotel room, there might be some issues.
The Ugly: The love hotels might have to clean up a bit before the Games begin. Foreigners would be wise to bring along blacklights if they get stuck at one of these joints.
OVERALL
The Good: I’d say Tokyo has a good shot at winning the bid for the ‘16 Games. The city has a history with the Olympics, it’s safe, convenient and unique. The best argument for Tokyo is the fact many facilities already are in use and the city itself is clean and accessible. It’s also important to note Tokyo had the highest bid score (8.3) of the remaining four locations.
The Bad: Beijing is hosting this year. London has 2012. But will the committee consider sending it right back to Asia if the other cities in the running, Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro, produce a compelling argument? Madrid is probably in the No. 2 slot, with Chicago as a dark horse along the same line as London, which came from nowhere to take the ‘10 slot.
The Ugly: Having to hear “shoganai” over and over and over and over and over if Tokyo doesn’t nab the bid.
This post was submitted by spartancus
(1 votes, average: 3 out of 5)
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Different situation in that they were spread out over the whole country, but the 2002 World Cup must count in Japan’s favour. A whole lot of infrastructure would have had to have been revamped in Tokyo for that.
(Also, London in 2012, not 2010!)
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Thanks for the heads-up, Tom. This is actually a re-post from the first incarnation of 7:10. I correctly edited it that time, but missed it this time
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There’s a huge section of empty land in Harumi which has signs all over proclaiming it as the site of the 2016 Olympics (if the city wins the bid)…
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It would be interesting but I live in Chicago and I can’t help but support my city no matter how much I like Tokyo, my favorite city in J-pan.
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You forgot the HUMAN factor when you analysed Tokyo. IMO, Japanese people is not ready, or not willing to be ready, to host such a big event that attracts hords of gaijin. Unless, of course, they are going to have Tokyo Olympics exclusively for the Japanese crowd. Ehh, I do expect to see things like ¨no foreigners allowed¨ , or Japanese refusing to get on subway cars with gaijin inside or to sit down next to one, or shop employees shouting ¨irashaimase¨ - with the true meaning of: ¨gaijin inside! robber inside!¨.
Tokyo is not ready to host Olympics.
Sorry!
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What the hell? We’re talking about Tokyo, not some backwater inaka town. You see more gaijin during rush hour on the trains than you see in a smaller city over the span of -months-.
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What the Tokyo? Hey, who´s talking about inaka vs capital? We´re talking about the Japanese society and the impact the Olympics will cause to Japan - and vice-versa. If you are still in the realm of dreams, wake up with this recent article from CNN
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/10/09/japan.inn.room.foreigners.ap/index.html
Still dreaming that Japanese will welcome hords of tourists in 2016?
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I have bookmarked this informativ site. Thanks Kfz Versicherung
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Tokyo could handle the gaijin influx fine. Increased hours for police and sanitary workers to cope with people not as into tidiness as the locals, and Japan would get a huge net win out of hosting.
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