How Japan is preparing for the 2020 Olympics

I am pretty sure that everybody is getting psyched about the 2020 World Summer Olympics which is gladly taking place in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo as the host city has long been anticipating and preparing for this much awaited event. It’s a given that people from all around the globe will flock to Japan to witness and enjoy the olympic games.

But there are however a couple of setbacks. The japanese society is a bit apprehensive because with regards to this ultimate event, the summer olympics will bring about both challenge and excitement. The last time Japan hosted this main event was in 1964. And after a bidding war with Turkey, Japan won with 60 votes to 36.

Aside from the 400 billion Japanese yen (over 3 billion USD) funding set by the Tokyo Metropolitan government, there are other several huge projects at stake in order to successfully host the event.

Here are some informations we have gathered:

1. A new railway is planned to set in order to link the Haneda airport and the Tokyo Station which would be convenient for all travellers as it would cut the travel time from 30 minutes to 18 minutes. Also from Narita Airport, it would only take 36 minutes instead of almost an hour. Olympic and Paralympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa is overseeing the preparations on behalf of the Japanese government.

2. And because Japan leads the world in terms of advancement in technology, what better way to make things better and easier for everyone during the olympics, other than integrating the use of robots to help visitors with language translation.

3. The japanese government is also taking into deep consideration the use of cruise ships to integrate in the preparations. As there is a great shortage and high demand in accommodation during the games, they are looking into using cruise ships to accommodate more visitors while giving them the best time during their stay. This brilliant idea is still being studied further and we can expect more in the coming days as the 2020 olympics is approaching.

4. There is also the installation of Sports Agency so as to provide more support to athletes so that they can win more medals in the games. In addition, this would also aid the aging japanese population as these facilities would encourage the senior citizens and alike to exercise and promote an active and healthy lifestyle.

5. Some of the venues are being renovated and rehabilitated such as the Heritage Zone, Tokyo Bay Zone, the Football venues and the sites from the Olympic Village. 28 of the 33 competition venues in Tokyo are within 8 kilometres (4.97 miles) of the Olympic Village.

6. There is also an evident increase and demand of ESL (english as a second language) lessons from the japanese professionals in order to cope with the communication line when the olympics take place. In order to connect and interact more.

7. More importantly, in order to ease the traffic congestion and the rush hours which is already too suffocating at the moment, the government proposed July 24 as a ‘day of telework’. This will enable employees to have the option to work remotely at least 10:30 am. “The Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry is hoping that about 1,000 companies will take part in the project, which is also designed to promote a change in people’s work style. – Japan Times”

8. There are also more and more installation of English signs and signals all over the city of Tokyo for ease and accessibility towards the foreigners and to make Japan more foreigner-friendly in the long run.

9. Last first week of April, the Security plan was already approved to promote the implementation of the conspiracy bill in Japan. This will allow the government to create a 24-hour coordination center and strengthen aerial surveillance as part of the security and safety strategies especially during the event. This is to protect and guard the country and all the people both locals and tourists especially during this weary times of war and threats.

This is such a remarkable chance to showcase what Japan has to offer to the world. As the 2020 Olympics is fast approaching, more and more people are looking forward to it. So, are you coming to Japan?