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MEXICO CITY, July 21 (Xinhua) -- The Olympic Games came to the Asian continent for the first time in October 1964 when the Japanese capital city of Tokyo hosted the 18th Olympics.
The Japanese city had previously been selected to host the Games 24 years before but the outbreak of World War II caused the 1940 Games to be cancelled.
The Games of the XVIII Olympiad, as they are officially known, allowed Japan to show that it was at the forefront of world technology and to introduce itself as a country that had underwent a rapid recovery and economic development after the war.
Japanese architects Kenzo Tange and Isozaki designed several of the Olympic facilities, including the well-known Yoyogi National Gymnasium, which was used for the swimming and basketball events as well as containing a pavilion for their national sport, judo. This building astounded visitors and spectators all over the world.
They provided an excellent service during this edition, which included making a fleet bicycles available to the athletes and visitors for free in the Olympic Village, located only two kilometers from the main stadium. An Olympic Village exclusively for both national and international journalists was even set up.
Typhoon Wilma threatened to get closer to the Japanese capital a few days before the Opening Ceremony, but eventually it lost strength just in time. However, the rain and the cold prevented a higher number of athletes from registering.
The Games ran from October 10 to 24 with 5,152 athletes participating from 93 countries in 163 events. The South African team was removed from the competition due to its segregationist policy against the black population while West and East Germany competed for the last time as a united team.
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Indonesia and China boycotted the Games due to disagreements with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) regarding the Games of the New Emerging Forces (GANEFO) which was held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Yoshinori Sakai, the last Olympic Torch bearer and member of the running team at the University of Waseda, was put in charge of lighting the Olympic Flame during the Opening Ceremony. The Japanese runner was born in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, the day the atomic bomb hit the city. he was chosen in homage to the victims and as a call for world peace.
Two new Olympic sports made an appearance in Japan - judo and volleyball, which were both popular in Japan at the time. The hosts won three gold medals in judo despite their big star Akio Kaminaga being defeated by the Netherlands Geesink. This left a bitter taste in Japan's mouth. Their female volleyball team took home the gold after defeating the Soviet Union team 3-2 in the final.
Other sports stars that shone in Tokyo included U.S. swimmer Don Schollander, who won a total of four gold medals, Ethiopia's Abebe Bikila, who took home the gold in the marathon for a second time, only a few weeks after undergoing surgery for acute appendicitis.
In gymnastics, Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina made her final appearance at the Olympics, retiring after participating in three consecutive editions and winning a total of 18 medals in her Olympic career, including nine gold and five silver.
In 1964, the cinder running track was used for the last time in the athletics events and a fibreglass pole was used for the first time in the polevaulting competition. The Tokyo Games were also the last occasion that hand timing by stopwatch was used for official timing.
OLYMPIC GAMES TOKYO 1964 MEDAL TABLE
COUNTRY GOLD SILVER BRONZE TOTAL
U.S. 36 26 28 90
USSR 30 31 35 96
Japan 16 5 8 29
Germany 10 22 18 50
Italy 10 10 7 27
Hungary 10 7 5 22
Poland 7 6 10 23
Australia 6 2 10 18
UK 4 12 2 18
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