The 50-day countdown to the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
During the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, a total of 878 award ceremonies will be held. As an important part of the award ceremony, the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Podium, award music, ceremony clothing and medal tray were officially released yesterday at the Ariake Gymnasium in Tokyo.
In her speech, Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee President Seiko Hashimoto said that when the athletes reached the top podium under the watchful eyes of the global audience, she sincerely hoped that that moment would truly reflect the significance of hosting the Olympic Games.
Podium
For the first time, it is made of renewable plastic
For the first time in olympic history, the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic podiums are made of recycled, renewable plastic.
According to figures released by the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, the podium production project recycled a total of 24.5 tons of renewable plastic, equivalent to 400,000 bottles of laundry detergent, which were made into a total of 98 podiums. Each podium weighs only 1.5 kilograms and will look different depending on the intensity of the light.
The Olympic Rings logo embedded in the podium is also made of recycled materials, using aluminum from temporary homes built in the disaster area after the Great East Japan Earthquake.
The podium is designed by Asaho Noro, who is also the designer of the emblem of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the design of the podium's checkered pattern is also inspired by the design of the emblem, "The checkered pattern is the main component of the emblem, through the combination of three different shapes and four corners, a variety of different shapes and styles are obtained. ”
Noro asahina said that the first consideration in designing the podium is to design works that can be preserved rather than discarded when they are used up, and these podiums will become souvenirs after the Olympic Games.
During the Tokyo Olympics, 339 award ceremonies will be held, compared with 539 during the Paralympic Games, for a total of 878.
The Tokyo Olympic podium was unveiled. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
Awards music
No Japanese-specific elements are used
Background music is an important part of the awards ceremony and has the effect of rendering the atmosphere. The background music at the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Awards Ceremony was composed by the well-known Japanese composer Naoki Sato, who has scored many films such as "Happy Three Chomes" and "Doraemon: Walk with Me", as well as the composition of the popular Ōkawa drama "Rushing Blue Sky".
According to Naoki Sato, the background music for the awards began recording last September, and more than 250 people participated. When it comes to creative inspiration, Naoki Sato says it's a great opportunity to combine music and sports. Before the creation, Naoki Sato listened to the songs used in many Olympic awards ceremonies in previous years, and many of the works used instruments and melodies that represented the characteristics of the host country, but he did not use any of the musical elements unique to Japan in the creation process.
"The awards ceremony is open to athletes from all over the world who come from a variety of cultural and linguistic backgrounds. I felt that if the Japanese element in the music was too strong, it might interfere with the atmosphere of the award ceremony. Naoki Sato did not want athletes to feel a sense of discord when they heard music, so he deliberately avoided Japanese elements and did not have a title.
Junichi Kawai, the 5 gold medalist of the Japanese Paralympic Games who attended the launch ceremony, said that after hearing the award music, goosebumps rose, "Although I have retired from the army and have no chance to be on the podium again, hearing this music immediately made me think of the moment when I stood on the podium, and those moments changed my life." ”
Tokyo Olympics awards costumes and award trays. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
Awards costumes
Cold-sensitive technology is used to relieve the heat
Responsible for the costume design of the ceremony celebrant was a cutting-edge Japanese designer, Akira Yamaguchi, who reformed the kimono and traditional Japanese clothing to set the tone of the "new fashion of dress". The whole outfit is based on blue, and the jacket is universal to men and women, with pants and dresses.
"Japanese and Western clothing design concepts are very different, Western-style clothing design pays attention to the fit with human muscles, the style is closer to the curve of the human body, more fit and practical. Japanese clothing design considers more skeletons, starting from the shoulders to the waist and below, and the clothes and the human body are not so close. Yamaguchi said all he needed to do was combine the best of both worlds.
Yamaguchi believes that clothing should be comfortable, that the people who wear them come from all ages and genders, and that he must reflect both Japanese style and practicality in the design process.
Like the podium made from recycled materials, the clothing of the ceremony celebrant of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games is also derived from recycled fibers. The fabric is sewn from Hanino City, Saitama Prefecture, and the belt is handled by craftsmen from Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture. In addition, the fabric uses cold sensing technology to help wearers alleviate Tokyo's hot summer climate.
The Tokyo Organising Committee also unveiled a tray design for the display of medals and bouquets of awards, made of recyclable thermoplastic polymers in the shape of a Japanese folding fan, with an indigo blue bottom that echoes the ceremony costume.
The bouquet of flowers awarded is mainly from the areas hit hard by the Great Japanese Earthquake. Photo: Tokyo 20207 official website
Awards bouquet
The flowers come from earthquake-stricken areas in Japan
Before announcing the podium, music and other award elements, the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee has announced the design plan for the bouquet of flowers, mainly from Miyagi Prefecture, Fukushima Prefecture, Iwate Prefecture and other areas hit by the Great East Japan Earthquake.
The bouquet was an important part of the Olympic award ceremony, dating back to the Stockholm Olympics in 1912. At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the bouquet was mainly composed of "Chinese Red" moon season, supplemented by dragon balls, false dragon heads, and mango leaves. The bouquet of prizes continued until London 2012, when rio 2016 was briefly cancelled and tokyo revived that tradition.
The main flower materials of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Bouquet of Flowers include orange stems and jade bamboo from Fukushima Prefecture, sunflowers from Miyagi Prefecture, gentian from Iwate Prefecture, and Ichiba Orchid from Tokyo, and the whole bouquet of flowers appears bright yellow, green and purple.
The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Bouquet is 17 cm wide and 28 to 30 cm high, and about 5,000 bunches will be used throughout the Olympic Games. Saburo Nomura, president of the Japan National Flower Farmers Association, hopes that these flowers will help them express their gratitude to people around the world for their care and help in the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Sun Haiguang, chief reporter of the Beijing News
Edited by Wang Chunqiu Proofreader Wei Zhuo