The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020) unveiled the updated programme for the “Tokyo 2020 NIPPON Festival” in 2021; this has been revised in light of the need for COVID-19 countermeasures and the simplified management of the Games. The Festival, an official cultural programme of the Tokyo 2020 Games, will be held from April to September 2021. The revised content will follow the original themes of the programme planned for 2020: “Participation and Interaction”, “Towards the Realisation of an Inclusive Society” and “Reconstruction of the Tohoku Region”. In principle, the events will be streamed live over the internet so that as many people as possible across Japan and around the world can participate in and enjoy the events.
Based on the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter, Olympism—a concept underpinning the NIPPON Festival—seeks to blend sport with culture and education in order to promote a peaceful way of life based on the educational value of good example, social responsibility and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles. For this reason, as well as being a sports festival, the Olympic and Paralympic Games are known as a “festival of peace”.
The cultural and artistic elements of the NIPPON Festival are designed to inspire people, and in the wake of the social fragmentation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the programme aims to be a symbol of human solidarity that will transcend boundaries and encourage global cooperation.
An overview of each programme is provided below. The Tokyo 2020 NIPPON Festival official website (https://tokyo2020.org/en/special/festival/) will be updated as details of all programmes are firmed up.
In addition to programmes organised by Tokyo 2020, co-hosted Tokyo 2020 NIPPON Festival events will be staged in collaboration with local governments and cultural- or arts groups across Japan; these aim to encourage greater awareness of diversity in the build-up to the Tokyo 2020 Games. They will also showcase Japanese culture and art across Japan and globally before and during the Games. Details of the updated co-hosted programmes are also provided in the attached appendix and via the Tokyo 2020 NIPPON Festival official website at https://tokyo2020.org/en/special/festival/.