Yoshinori Sakai (Ban Jing Yi Ze, Sakai Yoshinori, August 6, 1945-September 10, 2014) was the torchbearer for the Olympic flame in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He was 25 years old.
The Games were started on Friday, July 27, with a ceremony at the Olympic Stadium and went on until Sunday, August 8. During that time, several events were held including athletics, badminton, boxing, table tennis, and wrestling.
In addition to competing in individual events, some athletes had the opportunity to team up to compete in duos or teams. Japan's sumo wrestlers are known for their aggressive style of play and often use their strength to defeat their opponents. In 1964, two Japanese men joined forces to compete as a duo in the lightweight division of rowing - the coxless pair. The event was called "men in black" and both rowers were successful in reaching the final round before being defeated by a Canadian crew.
Japanese athletes have been very successful in the Olympics since they first began participating in 1948. So far, they have won gold in judo, weightlifting, and wrestling; silver in sailing, football, and rugby; and bronze in baseball, gymnastics, and swimming.
Because of his lovely and graceful running style, he was picked to ignite the 1936 Olympic torch. He was also seen as a symbol of athletic youth. Schilgen's spectacular lighting of the flame was included in Olympia, a Nazi propaganda film.
Two youths lighted the 1976 Summer Olympic cauldron, symbolizing the union of French and English Canada. Crown Prince Haakon of Norway lighted the 1994 Winter Olympic cauldron in honor of his father and grandfather, both of whom had competed in the Olympics.
During the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Yoshinori Sakai lighted the Olympic cauldron. He was an athlete, however he never competed in an Olympic Games. He was born on the day when an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Sakai was chosen to ignite the Olympic torch as a symbol of Japan's postwar restoration and peace.
The Olympic torch is usually kindled by a competitor in the Olympic Games. From the opening through the closing ceremonies, the Olympic cauldron remains ablaze. Ververidis Vasilis/Shutterstock.com/editorial The lighting of the Olympic torch is a ritual that has been part of the Olympics for almost 80 years.
Because of his lovely and graceful running style, he was picked to ignite the 1936 Olympic torch. He was also seen as a symbol of athletic youth. Schilgen's spectacular lighting of the flame was included in Olympia, a Nazi propaganda film.
In June 2016, indigenous shaman Raimundo Dessana (right) and his son Reginaldo Dessana participate in an Olympic Torch ritual in Brazil's Tupe Reservation in the Amazon rain forest.
The runners' torches are carefully designed to burn with a huge, visible yellow flame that can be photographed, as well as a smaller, hotter white flame that can't be blown out as quickly. But life doesn't always go as planned—what if the light is accidently extinguished?
You can track the journey of the torch relay here until the cauldron is lighted in Rio de Janeiro on August 5. The Nazis established the Olympic torch relay tradition in 1936 to kick off the Berlin Summer Olympics. Please cite this! Shields, Jesslyn "What Happens If the Olympic Torch Is Accidentally Extinguished?"
The flame that will fire the cauldron at the Olympic Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on Friday, Aug. 5, symbolizes the link between the ancient and current Olympic games, and was kindled in April at the Temple of Hera in Olympia, Greece, by an actress costumed as the high priestess of the Vestal Virgins.
One of the most dramatic Olympic cauldron lighting rituals occurred during the 1992 Summer Olympics, when Paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo lighted the cauldron by firing a blazing arrow over it, igniting gas rising from the cauldron. According to unofficial videos, the flame was sparked from below. A spokesperson for the International Paralympic Committee stated that "it is not known exactly how" the fire was started.
During the 1936 Games, a similar scene played out as American Charles Green fired an arrow into a burning log on top of the cauldron; however, in that case, the arrow failed to ignite the log.
At the 2008 Beijing Games, Chinese archer Jia Xu fired three arrows into the cauldron, setting off a fireworks display and bringing the ceremony to an end.
Rebollo's shot became an instant classic and helped raise awareness of the Paralympics worldwide. It has been estimated that his feat drew more than one million viewers at the time of its broadcast to Chinese television.
After retiring from active competition, he went on to become one of China's leading experts in archery coaching and training. He has coached several world-class archers including Yan Junliang, who won gold at the 2012 London Games using a technique similar to that employed by Rebollo himself.
History. Paavo Nurmi, a nine-time Olympic winner, was the first well-known athlete to fire the cauldron during the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. Other notable torchbearers include French footballer Michel Platini (1992), heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali (1996), and Australian sprinter Cathy Freeman (1999). (2000),...
The Olympic cauldron was lighted with a torch, although the flame was not created using a lighter prior to the event. The Olympic flame travels for months, being carried by people throughout the Olympic torch relay, before arriving at the Opening Ceremony. At that point, it is lit by the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who strikes the top of the cauldron with a small hammer to start the fire.
In London, they used British oil to light the Olympic cauldron. But since Japan is still recovering from last year's earthquake and tsunami, the IOC decided to use Japanese electricity to light the cauldron on August 8th at the opening ceremony in Tokyo. The cauldron was designed by Mika Kakiuchi and it is made of carbon fiber and aluminum.
You may be wondering, why do something as important as lighting the Olympic cauldron need to be done so spectacularly? The Olympics are meant to be a celebration of sport and its benefits for society as well as a demonstration of power and prestige for both countries involved. Burning great quantities of oil or coal to light the cauldron shows that both Britain and Japan are committed to reducing climate change even if the world isn't yet ready to hear it.
After the cauldron was lit, Queen Elizabeth II said: "We are surrounded by nations who want peace but all too often be caught up in wars.
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