Let's go !
The Olympic torch relay for the Tokyo Games, delayed until this summer due to the coronavirus pandemic, was launched Thursday in Fukushima (northeastern Japan) in the absence of an audience, as organizers try to dispel the concerns of a reluctant population.
The rose gold metallic torch, at the top in the shape of a cherry blossom, was ignited in the morning in the very symbolic J-Village sports complex, which had served as a base for relief operations after the nuclear disaster of March 11 2011, following an earthquake and a tsunami.
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Speaking at the relay launch ceremony, Tokyo-2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said she hoped the Olympic flame would be "a ray of light at the end of the darkness."
“This little flame never lost hope and waited for this day like a cherry blossom about to bloom,” she added.
Health situation still worrying in Japan
The Olympic torch relay, like the Olympic Games themselves, will be very different from previous editions, with spectators having to be masked and not having the right to cheer.
They were also kept away from the start ceremony and the first section.
But the public will then be able to follow the course of the flame which will pass through the 47 departments of Japan before arriving at the Tokyo National Stadium for the opening ceremony of the Games on July 23.
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The flame has been in Japan since last year, where organizers were making final preparations for the relay when the Games were postponed for a year due to the coronavirus.
A year later, the health situation is still worrying despite the first vaccines and Olympic officials face the skepticism and concern of the Japanese population.
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Spectators from overseas will ultimately not be able to attend the Games and it is likely that stadium limits will be imposed on the number of spectators living in Japan.
