Think back, and you might stumble upon fragments of the Tokyo Olympics hidden among the myriad of events you’ve pushed aside during the pandemic. Lamont Marcell Jacobs’s triumph in the men’s 100m could be nestled next to Joe Wicks’s home workout routines, while Mutaz Barshim’s choice to share a high jump gold medal with Gianmarco Tamberi sits adjacent to Gal Gadot’s celebrity rendition of Imagine.
Reconstruct the Games, and they still resemble a surreal dreamscape, 17 days of athletic competition in nearly-empty arenas specifically erected for the occasion, set against a city grappling with a state of emergency.
Tensions were palpable. There were more demonstrators outside the main venue than attendees within. A wandering black bear was reported near the softball field, prompting local officials to fire off firecrackers at night to deter it. Surfers battled small waves while a skatepark brimmed with exceptionally gifted young women executing backflips. Despite an official ban on participation, Russia seemed to dominate the medal tally. And in the midst of all this, a German modern pentathlon coach ignited an international uproar by striking a horse.
As the closing ceremony drew near, the limited attendees were requested to rise for International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, who waved to a ghost crowd while relaying a speech filled with relief, declaring “we did it.”
And why not feel relieved? Organizing the Tokyo Games was a monumental logistical achievement. For a fleeting moment, one could almost believe it served a noble purpose, creating a sense of global solidarity among participants united to face a shared challenge.
This was, of course, if one overlooked what Bach seemed to forget: the Games were conducted against the overwhelming opposition of many Japanese citizens. They proceeded solely due to the hosting contract inked with the IOC, costing the nation $6 billion in public funds for an event its populace could not attend. Once it concluded, the organizers were eager for a swift exit, granting athletes merely 48 hours to vacate the country. A year later, the Associated Press reported on a Japanese academic studying the Games’ legacy, who remarked, “people don’t want to discuss it or contemplate it.”
This sentiment emerged before police initiated arrests of organizing committee members amid an investigation into a vast bribery and corruption scandal. Shortly thereafter, Sapporo’s bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics quietly fell through due to a lack of public backing.
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By that time, Bach, the IOC, and all others had moved forward. Anticipation for the Paris Olympics started to rise shortly after the Tokyo closing ceremony, accompanied by a 15-minute video display that radiated joie de vivre, starkly contrasting the somber atmosphere in Japan. For the IOC, Paris promised a tranquil and risk-free Olympics.
This will mark a return to the West, following a decade of two bleak Winter Games in Sochi and Beijing, along with a summer festival in Rio plagued by issues of waste, corruption, and fears over the Zika virus.
It is the first Games planned wholly under the IOC’s Agenda 2020 reforms aimed at making the Olympics more affordable, popular, sustainable, and secure.
However, life moves swiftly in the 21st century. In no time, locals are planning to protest by polluting the Seine. If Tokyo became synonymous with the Covid Games, the upcoming Paris edition—set against the backdrop of geopolitical conflicts and the ongoing turmoil of Emmanuel Macron’s grand national initiative—has already been branded the Conflict Games.
In a joint editorial from three prominent French newspapers, Bach remarked that these Games are taking place “at a time when the world is fractured by such conflict and division; people everywhere are weary of the hate, wars, and hostilities.”
Bach is positioning himself for another term as IOC president, even though the IOC’s own anti-corruption guidelines indicate he should exit in 2025. He frames Paris as a grand gesture of peace. “Even if their countries are at odds or in conflict, their athletes will compete under the same regulations,” he stated. “They will coexist peacefully in the Olympic Village.”
The coverage surrounding the formal adoption of the Olympic Truce resolution at the UN (with Russia opting to abstain) highlighted that all 206 IOC members would be represented, even as Russia, this time, is limited to athletes who have seemingly renounced the conflict in Ukraine, while Afghan women athletes—a group exiled from their nation—have been disregarded by their own government.
Paris likely won’t meet these lofty ambitions, just as Tokyo fell short of its own. Yet it will offer a long moment of respite from the uncertainties of the world, a much-needed distraction from our shared troubles. The athletes will embody this spirit, delivering noble efforts, tense disputes, chaotic moments, and breathtaking displays of talent. It will be magnificent in countless ways, and regrettable in others, as it has always been. However, we hope there will be fewer bears this time, and thankfully, more supporters.
