Japan was a startling decision as the first non-Western country to be granted the Olympics at an age when the chosen nation had the option of hosting both the summer and winter games in the same year. Tokyo was supposed to host the summer edition, with Sapporo hosting the winter version. War intervened once more. This time it was a conflict between Japan and Russia over control of north Korea and China. When peace was restored, both countries again agreed that someone else should host the games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted 3 to 1 to award the next games to Japan. The vote came after the United States withdrew from the project for financial reasons.
The first modern Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, in 1896. They were followed by Stockholm, Sweden; Chicago, USA; Berlin, Germany; and finally London, England, which is currently the city that holds the annual event.
1964 The 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo were Asia's first summer and winter games, respectively. Japan hosted the Winter Olympics for the third time in 1998 in Nagano.
During ancient Greek times, when athletic competitions were held to honor the gods, they were called "games" or "championships". When Athens held these events annually, they were called "olympic" games. Today, the word "olympic" is used to describe any competition that involves the best athletes in the world.
Athletes who have won gold medals include: Ichiro Suzuki (baseball), Yoshihide Matsunaka (badminton), Koichi Kato (boxing), Kazuhito Ishii (figure skating), Mika Sugimoto (snowboarding), Takahiko Kozuka (speed skating), and Noriaki Kasai (weightlifting). Women who have won gold medals include: Yoko Ono (synchronized swimming), Ayano Sakurai (swimming), and Sayuri Kawasumi (table tennis).
List of Olympic Host Nations
| Country | Summer Games | Winter Games |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | 1936, 1972 | 1936 |
| Greece | 1896, 1906!, 2004 | |
| Japan | 1964, (2020) | 1972, 1998 |
| Italy | 1960 | 1956, 2006, (2026) |
At the 125th IOC session in 2013, Tokyo was announced as the host city for the 2020 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games, seven years ago today (7 September). The declaration made Tokyo the fourth city to hold the Summer Olympics twice and the first to host the Paralympics for the second time. It is also expected that Tokyo will become the first city to host the Olympics three times.
The choice of Tokyo was not easy. After Chicago was eliminated in the first round of voting at the 2005 IOC Session in Madrid, Spain, Athens was left without a bid partner and was therefore defaulted by Rome as the host city of the 2004 Summer Olympics. However, with the support of then-Prime Minister of Greece Costas Karamanlis, Athens managed to win the vote for the 2008 Summer Olympics against Vancouver and Beijing. This time, however, there were no objections from Rome and Athens became the seventh city to host the Olympics twice.
In 2009, after Beijing failed to meet the requirements set by the IOC, the decision was made by the executive board to award the Games again. In the end, London was chosen over Paris, Hamburg, Toronto, Budapest, Los Angeles, and Madrid. This makes London the fifth city to host the Olympics three times after Stockholm, Helsinki, Amsterdam, and Berlin.
Tokyo was the clear winner among the remaining cities with proposals Houston, Lima, Prague, Moscow, and Istanbul.
Rio de Janeiro was the first South American city to host the Olympic Games in 2016. In 2016, the inaugural Summer Games were staged exclusively during the winter season. The other two summer Olympics held in the southern hemisphere began in winter and ended in spring. The Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro began and ended in August.
The modern Olympic Games were founded by Greek athletes who met in 688 B.C. to compete against the world in wrestling matches. These games were held only twice (in Athens and Sardis) because of political problems. In A.D. 148, Emperor Titus hosted more Olympiads to celebrate the conclusion of wars and to encourage peace among nations. In A.D. 392, Alaric the Visigoth stole the Olympic torch from its shrine and used it to light up the night sky with flames; this act is why we use torches at night at modern Olympic events.
In 776, the emperor Leo III decided to hold a new series of Olympic Games after the original ones had not been held for several years. So, he called for competitions in boxing, running, jumping, wrestling, and swimming. The emperor also invited foreign athletes to come to Rome and compete as part of their acceptance into the Roman Empire. But only three people came to Italy. One was an Indian athlete named Varus who won four out of five events that he participated in. The second person was a German soldier named Maximus who won four events too.
Summer Olympic Games have been held twice in Australia, France, Germany, and Greece. Belgium, Canada, China, Finland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, the Soviet Union, and Sweden have all hosted the Summer Olympics once. No nation has host the Winter Olympics more than another; Germany is the most successful country with four victories.
Canada and Switzerland have each hosted the Olympics three times. Germany, Italy, and Russia each have two venues that have hosted the Olympics more than any other city/country. Berlin and Sochi, Florida respectively, have hosted the games twice.
Berlin was the first German city to host the Olympics when they did so in 1936. They're again hosting in 2036. The United States will be hosting for the second time when they do so in 2020. Athens originally hosted the games in 1896 but had them cancelled due to financial problems. They held them again in 2004 and London replaced them as the host city for the second time when they did so in 2012.
Sochi has previously hosted the Youth Olympics in 2014 and the World Ice Hockey Championships in 2013. It'll be the first time the Olympics are being held in Russia since 1980 when Moscow hosted them. Countries can submit bids to host the Olympics. If the city or country wants to bid for the games they must first apply through their national Olympic committee.
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