Tokyo Hosts Asia’s First Olympic Games

On October 10, 1964, the opening ceremony of the Games of the XVIII Olympiad commenced in Tokyo, marking the first time the Olympic Games were staged in Asia. Tokyo had originally been selected to organize the 1940 Summer Olympics, but Japan forfeited the event following its invasion of China, and the competition was ultimately cancelled because of World War II. When the International Olympic Committee met in Munich on May 26, 1959, the delegates awarded the 1964 Games to Tokyo over rival proposals from Detroit, Brussels, and Vienna. Organizers scheduled the events for mid-October rather than the traditional summer months to avoid Tokyo's intense heat, high humidity, and early autumn typhoon season.

The opening ceremony carried deliberate symbolism regarding Japan's postwar transformation. The final torchbearer, Yoshinori Sakai, had been born in Hiroshima Prefecture.