Paralympics closing marks end of Tokyo’s 8-year Olympics saga

Tokyo, September 5

The final act of the delayed Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics came today, almost eight years to the day after the Japanese capital was awarded the Games. The Paralympics ended a 13-day run in a colourful, circus-like ceremony at the National Stadium overseen by Crown Prince Akishino, the brother of Emperor Naruhito. The Olympics had closed almost a month ago.

These were unprecedented Olympics and Paralympics, postponed for a year and marked by footnotes and asterisks. No fans were allowed during the Olympics, except for a few thousand at outlying venues away from Tokyo.

A few thousand school children were allowed into some Paralympics venues.

“There were many times when we thought these games could not happen,” Andrew Parsons, president of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), said on Sunday. “There were many sleepless nights.”

The closing ceremony was entitled “harmonious cacophony” and involved both able-bodied actors and others with disabilities. The theme was described by organisers as a “world inspired by the Paralympics, one where differences shine.”

Like the Olympics, the Paralympics went ahead as Tokyo was under a state of emergency due to the pandemic. Like the Olympics, testing athletes frequently and isolating them in a bubble kept the virus largely at bay, though cases surged among a Japanese population that is now almost 50% fully vaccinated.

“I believe that we have reached the end of games without any major problems,” said Seiko Hashimoto, the president of the Tokyo organising committee. The Paralympics may leave a more tangible legacy in Japan than the Olympics. — AP