The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and the performativity of sport nationalism: Taiwanese identity and online mobilization

This essay examines how Taiwanese national identity was performed on social media during the postponed Tokyo Olympics 2020. Taiwan achieved its best-ever medal tally, leading to the emergence of a new form of sport nationalism. Athletes' off-field behaviors, including diverse gender expressions, distinguished them not only from their Chinese counterparts but also from previous generations of Taiwanese athletes. Badminton, weightlifting, and table tennis athletes became the "proxy warriors” of Taiwan, showcasing the democratic and diverse nature of Taiwanese society. The Tokyo Olympics, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions, became a battleground for ideologies, with the complex relationships among Taiwan, China, and Japan setting the backdrop for narratives. To depart from traditional research on official national discourses, this essay employs critical discourse analysis (CDA) by examining Facebook content and comments on news reports related to Taiwanese Olympians. This essays argues that Taiwan's cyber civil society has developed a flexible strategy to counter China's aggression on the internet. Taiwanese online mobilization demonstrated self-control, creativity, and adaptability, establishing a unique Taiwanese identity during the Tokyo Olympics in the midst of the pandemic. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of National Identities is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

The 2020/2021 Tokyo Olympics: Does Japan get the gold medal or the wooden spoon?

The Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics will go down in history as the 'Pandemic Games'. Postponed by a year due to Covid-19, they were eventually held despite broad public protest and amidst the Delta variant wave. Japan brought home a record haul of medals, yet Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide resigned in ignominy shortly after the Games ended. So, was Tokyo 2020/2021 a 'success' or a 'failure', and for whom? We examine the policy and politics of the Games, considering the attribution of 'success' and 'failure' to the Olympics across a range of issues, actors, and narratives. Reviewing their economic, public health, soft power, and political impact, we find that the Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics remain deeply ambiguous. Prime Minister Abe Shinzō's vision of a proud, 'reborn' Japan showcasing itself to the world obviously did not come to pass;neither did the promise of a 'Recovery Olympics' aiding in the reconstruction of the post-3/11 Tohoku region. Conversely, the predictions of a COVID-19 catastrophe, of even an 'Olympic variant', also failed to transpire. Rather, the Olympics became a pared-down event forced through by vested interests, notably the IOC and Dentsu. The political fallout was contained by one-party dominance in Japan's democracy, where even a forced mega-event during a pandemic was insufficient to threaten the Liberal Democratic Party's stranglehold on power. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

The COVID-19 outbreak and public perceptions of sport events in Japan

The pandemic of the COVID-19 has forced various sport organizations to postpone or cancel sport events. The current investigation provides a rapid analysis of public perceptions of (1) postponement and cancelation decisions made by sport organizations, and (2) whether the Tokyo Olympics 2020 should be held in July 2020. Data from Japanese citizens (n = 529) show that approximately 75% supported postponement decisions made by professional sport leagues. Surprisingly, only fewer than 50% supported the cancelation decision of the high school baseball tournament (i.e., Spring Koshien). Regarding the Tokyo Olympics, 35.2% disagreed with holding the games, which was almost identical to those who were in favour of holding it (35.3%). The government and decision-makers should recognize the potential biases in public opinions and prioritize the scientific evidence to protect the health of the community. (Note: The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics 2020 was postponed after the completion of this study).

Peculiar weather patterns effects on air pollution and COVID-19 spread in Tokyo metropolis.

As a pandemic hotspot in Japan, between March 1, 2020-October 1, 2022, Tokyo metropolis experienced seven COVID-19 waves. Motivated by the high rate of COVID-19 incidence and mortality during the seventh wave, and environmental/health challenges we conducted a time-series analysis to investigate the long-term interaction of air quality and climate variability with viral pandemic in Tokyo. Through daily time series geospatial and observational air pollution/climate data, and COVID-19 incidence and death cases, this study compared the environmental conditions during COVID-19 multiwaves. In spite of five State of Emergency (SOEs) restrictions associated with COVID-19 pandemic, during (2020-2022) period air quality recorded low improvements relative to (2015-2019) average annual values, namely: Aerosol Optical Depth increased by 9.13% in 2020 year, and declined by 6.64% in 2021, and 12.03% in 2022; particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 decreased during 2020, 2021, and 2022 years by 10.22%, 62.26%, 0.39%, and respectively by 4.42%, 3.95%, 5.76%. For (2021-2022) period the average ratio of PM2.5/PM10 was (0.319 ± 0.1640), showing a higher contribution to aerosol loading of traffic-related coarse particles in comparison with fine particles. The highest rates of the daily recorded COVID-19 incidence and death cases in Tokyo during the seventh COVID-19 wave (1 July 2022-1 October 2022) may be attributed to accumulation near the ground of high levels of air pollutants and viral pathogens due to: 1) peculiar persistent atmospheric anticyclonic circulation with strong positive anomalies of geopotential height at 500 hPa; 2) lower levels of Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) heights; 3) high daily maximum air temperature and land surface temperature due to the prolonged heat waves (HWs) in summer 2022; 4) no imposed restrictions. Such findings can guide public decision-makers to design proper strategies to curb pandemics under persistent stable anticyclonic weather conditions and summer HWs in large metropolitan areas.

COVID-19 infection risk assessment and management at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games: A scoping review.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games was one of the largest international mass-gathering events held after the beginning of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. In this scoping review, we extracted papers discussing COVID-19 risk assessment or management at the Tokyo 2020 Games to determine the nature of studies that were conducted. Among the 75 papers obtained from two search engines (PubMed and ScienceDirect) and four papers collected from hand-searches, 30 papers were extracted. Only eight papers performed both COVID-19 prior risk assessment and quantitative evaluation of effectiveness measures, highlighting the importance of rapid, solution-focused risk assessment. Furthermore, this review revealed that the findings regarding the spread of COVID-19 infection to citizens in the host country were inconsistent depending on the assessment methods and that assessments of the spread of infection outside the host country were lacking.

How Covid changed sport – a case study of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games

This essay aims to document how world sport has changed since Covid. It is based on an ethnography conducted during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Using field research in Japan, it seeks to highlight the challenges in Olympics coverage going forward while also arguing that Covid has meant the media must be much more focused and knowledgeable to be able to cover the Games well.

When COVID-19 struck the world and elite sports: Psychological challenges and support provision in five countries during the first phase of the pandemic

The authors operated in professional roles related to preparations for Tokyo 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world. The purpose of this article is to share applied experiences and reflections from different parts of the world of psychological challenges and support strategies adopted in elite sports during the first phase of the pandemic (i.e., March to August 2020). Common themes included motivational issues, stress and anxiety, loss of routine, life-balance challenges among athletes, but also benefits of extended preparation time and recovery. Variations in support strategies and consequences from the effects of COVID-19 occurred across countries. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Hosting the Olympics in times of a pandemic: Historical insights from Antwerp 1920

Postponing the Tokyo 2020 Olympics due to the global outbreak of COVID-19 marks a unique moment in the history of the Olympic Movement. For the first time since the cancelation of the Olympic Games during both World Wars, the Olympics will not take place as scheduled. This unprecedented postponement strongly impacts the Olympic Movement. Although only the future can tell exactly, the Antwerp 1920 Olympics can offer certain historical insights. Exactly 100 years ago, the Antwerp Olympic Games were the first Olympics organized after World War I and the Spanish flu pandemic. Their value in terms of rising the Olympic Movement from its ashes is vital. Profoundly promoting its identity, newly introduced Olympic symbols then helped avoiding the collapse of the Olympic Movement. Acknowledged as the "Games Reborn", the Antwerp 1920 Olympics were strongly about recovery, helping to heal a wounded society. How could Tokyo 2020 fulfill the same role? (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Hosting Olympic Games under a state of emergency: are people still proud of their country?

The purpose of this research is to identify the fluctuation of national pride during the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021. Previous research has found that hosting mega sporting events increases national pride. However, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games were held under a situation different than that considered by conventional research. The Tokyo Olympic Games faced opposition from public opinion due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This research involved two surveys conducted before and after the Tokyo Olympic Games. The results showed that people's national pride increased. Furthermore, the impact of the Tokyo Olympic Games varied across individuals. Respondents who were anxious about COVID-19 experienced a smaller increase in national pride due to the event than those who were less anxious about COVID-19. This research concludes that hosting mega sporting events can increase national pride, but this effect is limited in the context of severe social issues. The limitations of this research and directions for future research are discussed.

Reshuffling city life: spatial and functional dynamics of urban activity in Tokyo during COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic, and the measures to curb it have profoundly affected the geography of urban activities in the past years. In this paper, we discuss its effects on urban activity in Tokyo during the first wave of COVID between February and July 2020. Different from other papers, which have analysed general changes in urban activity levels or changes in specific activities, we have focused on changes in activity levels in different types of multifunctional urban activity centres (UAC), allowing us to reveal interactions between UAC types, (combinations of) activities and location within a wider urban system. Our results show how the distribution of urban activity across UAC changed in space and time in reaction to pandemic measures, and relate these dynamics to the spatial patterns of functional specialization of UAC. The existing spatial pattern of UAC allowed urban activities to redistribute spatially, but continue without too much inhibition. Moreover, these changes appeared to be temporary, rather than resulting in irreversible urban transformations. Our analysis thus suggests that Tokyo's multilayered polynuclear structure appeared to contribute to the city's pandemic resilience, allowing urban activities to spatially reorganize, without needing to resort to a total lockdown and collapse of urban life. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Streetscape Scenarios of Ephemeral Public Spaces before and during the pandemic of COVID-19 in Ura-Harajuku, Tokyo

Over the past two years, the Coronavirus pandemic has affected not only the modern working lifestyle but also has impacted street life by demanding social distance and avoiding closed and crowded places. Since then, the public spaces around the world have been trying to adapt to this new environment. Tokyo, one of the most populated metropolises in the world, known for its small apartments and lively streets, has previously made use of the street as a public space, for instance, some commercial Streets in Tokyo are enjoyed as an entire sidewalk by sharing the same space with different means of transportation, providing a walkable environment as a sustainable solution for accessibility in the actual city life. This study will clarify some of the necessities of the new streetscape environment, it will contribute to learning from the ephemeral and close relationship of the use of the street as public spaces in the COVID-19 pandemic and before, enlightening safe but lively pedestrian activities as sustainable and dynamic strategies for a constantly changing lifestyle, helping our cities to be resilient in unpredictable situations for the street life of today and the future emergencies. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.

Molecular and Epidemiological Analysis of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Detected in Tokyo, Japan in 2021 Season.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, Japan experienced an outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection. A total of 51 RSV cases were detected from the infant specimens, including 38 rhinorrhea and 13 nasopharyngeal swabs, collected at the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Public Health. Of these 51 cases, 12 belonged to RSV-A and 39 to RSV-B. G protein gene sequences of RSV-A belonged to the ON1 genotype, whereas RSV-B belonged to the BA9 genotype; thus, different types of RSV were detected during the same period, suggesting that the unusual 2021 RSV season was not due to a single strain or genotype. Of all RSV-positive cases, the proportion of cases aged ≥2 years was 56.8% in 2021, which was higher than 31.2% in the past 5 years. This indicates that infants aged <1 year who were originally susceptible to RSV infection were less likely to be infected with RSV because of the COVID-19 control measures. The 2021 epidemic peaked in the 28th week, which was 9 weeks earlier than the average from 2016 to 2020. It seems necessary to accumulate and analyze further data, such as factors that became an outbreak and the characteristics of the detected viruses in 2021.

The Impact of Preventive Strategies Adopted during Large Events on the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of the Tokyo Olympics to Provide Guidance for Future Large Events.

This study aimed to analyze the impact of hosting large events on the spread of pandemics, taking Tokyo Olympics 2020 as a case study. A risk assessment method for the whole organization process was established, which could be used to evaluate the effectiveness of various risk mitigation measures. Different scenarios for Games participants and Japanese residents during the Tokyo Olympics were designed based on the infection control protocols proposed by the Olympic Committee and local governments. A modified Wells-Riley model considering the influence of social distance, masking and vaccination, and an SIQRV model that introduced the effect of quarantine and vaccination strategies on the pandemic spread were developed in this study. Based on the two models, our predicted results of daily confirmed cases and cumulative cases were obtained and compared with reported data, where good agreement was achieved. The results show that the two core infection control strategies of the bubble scheme and frequent testing scheme curbed the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic during the Tokyo Olympics. Among Games participants, Japanese local staff accounted for more than 60% of the total in positive cases due to their large population and most relaxed travel restrictions. The surge in positive cases was mainly attributed to the high transmission rate of the Delta variant and the low level of immunization in Japan. Based on our simulation results, the risk management flaws for the Tokyo Olympics were identified and improvement measures were investigated. Moreover, a further analysis was carried out on the impact of different preventive measures with respect to minimizing the transmission of new variants with higher transmissibility. Overall, the findings in this study can help policymakers to design scientifically based and practical countermeasures to cope with pandemics during the hosting of large events.

Reporting on the implementation to set up a "care and isolation facility" for mild COVID-19 cases in Tokyo.

The increasing number of COVID-19 cases has placed pressure on medical facilities. Against this backdrop, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government established a facility for mild and asymptomatic COVID-19 cases by using existing hotels. These kinds of facilities were established in several countries, and represented a spectrum from hotel-like to hospital-like care. In this article, we focused on implementation and related strategies for establishing such a facility in Tokyo as implementation research, while ensuring patient and staff safety. This facility had three functions: care, isolation, and buffering. For the implementation strategy, we used several strategies from the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) to implement functions similar to an ordinary hospital, but using fewer inputs. This experience can be applied to other resource-limited settings such as that in less developed countries.

COVID-19, sustainability and Olympic Games: which lessons can we learn from Tokyo 2020?

Purpose>This paper aims to understand how the sustainability theme has been incorporated into the new Olympic planning guidelines based on analysing the case of Tokyo (2020), which was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approach>For this, field research using the case study method was carried out that involved 21 in-depth interviews with experts from different entities affected by the event.Findings>As a result, it was possible to identify that some characteristics already presented in the Tokyo project came to break away from the gigantism observed in the past Olympic editions in an attempt to demonstrate alignment with the new principles brought by the IOC (2020) and 2020 + 5 Agenda that had as one of its main objectives to simplify the Olympics, making the event more sustainable and accessible for future host societies.Originality/value>At the end, some trends for the future of the Olympic Games are also presented in order to guide future studies in the area, as well as help the future host cities and their companies in planning their investments.

Streetscape Scenarios of Ephemeral Public Spaces before and during the pandemic of COVID-19 in Ura-Harajuku, Tokyo

Over the past two years, the Coronavirus pandemic has affected not only the modern working lifestyle but also has impacted street life by demanding social distance and avoiding closed and crowded places. Since then, the public spaces around the world have been trying to adapt to this new environment. Tokyo, one of the most populated metropolises in the world, known for its small apartments and lively streets, has previously made use of the street as a public space, for instance, some commercial Streets in Tokyo are enjoyed as an entire sidewalk by sharing the same space with different means of transportation, providing a walkable environment as a sustainable solution for accessibility in the actual city life. This study will clarify some of the necessities of the new streetscape environment, it will contribute to learning from the ephemeral and close relationship of the use of the street as public spaces in the COVID-19 pandemic and before, enlightening safe but lively pedestrian activities as sustainable and dynamic strategies for a constantly changing lifestyle, helping our cities to be resilient in unpredictable situations for the street life of today and the future emergencies.

Hosting Olympic Games under a state of emergency: are people still proud of their country?

The purpose of this research is to identify the fluctuation of national pride during the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021. Previous research has found that hosting mega sporting events increases national pride. However, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games were held under a situation different than that considered by conventional research. The Tokyo Olympic Games faced opposition from public opinion due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This research involved two surveys conducted before and after the Tokyo Olympic Games. The results showed that people's national pride increased. Furthermore, the impact of the Tokyo Olympic Games varied across individuals. Respondents who were anxious about COVID-19 experienced a smaller increase in national pride due to the event than those who were less anxious about COVID-19. This research concludes that hosting mega sporting events can increase national pride, but this effect is limited in the context of severe social issues. The limitations of this research and directions for future research are discussed.

Changes in Destinations of Migrants from Tokyo Special Wards during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Large migrations from major cities were observed in many countries in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic spread worldwide. In Japan, the number of out-migrants from the Tokyo metropolis has increased and the pattern of internal migration has changed due to the pandemic. This article examines changes in destinations of migrants from Tokyo special wards, the central part of the Tokyo metropolitan area. As a result, the suburban areas of the Tokyo metropolitan area and northwest and southwest regions outside it were identified as regional destination clusters that received increased numbers of migrants from Tokyo special wards. The characteristics of the regions and age and occupational compositions of in-migrants indicated that the pandemic facilitated so-called lifestyle migration from the metropolitan center in Japan.抄録新型コロナウイルスのパンデミックが生じた2020年には，世界の多くの大都市で大規模な人口の転出が確認された．日本においても東京都からの転出の増加を含む人口移動パターンの変化が生じている．そこで東京大都市圏の中心となる東京都区部からの転出に着目して，その移動先の分布の変化にみられた特徴を分析した．結果として，移動者が増加した地域として東京大都市圏の郊外部と大都市圏外の北西部および南西部の地域が検出された．これらの地域の特徴と推定される移動者の年齢や職業の構成からは，新型コロナウイルスの流行が大都市圏都心部からのライフスタイル移住を促進したことが示唆された．

Balancing Public & Economic Health in Japan during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Descriptive Analysis.

Despite loose restrictions and a low mortality rate due to COVID-19, Japan faced the challenge of stabilizing its economy during the pandemic. Here, we analyzed how the Japanese government attempted to maintain a balance between the health of the population and the health of the economy. We used a mix of quantitative data, information from policy documents, and news agency publications. Features of the Japanese government's handling of the pandemic include the lack of constitutional authority to enforce a lockdown, the laxer restrictions compared with other countries in which citizens were advised only to exercise self-restraint and avoid close social contact, and the existence of expert panels that had only an advisory role. Our findings address the slow initial response of the government, which feared that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics would be canceled, and the increased testing when the Olympics were postponed, as well as the expansion of vaccination efforts after the Olympics. In addition, there was a targeted campaign to promote national travel to increase economic revenue in the tourism sector, but this led to an increase in COVID-19 cases.