Japan: Reactions to Tokyo's Olympic Bid (Part Two)

What does the Japanese blogosphere and Twitterverse have to say about Tokyo's bid to host the 2016 Olympics? Part Two introduces some reactions after Rio won the bid. (See Part One for pre-announcement reactions.)

Tokyo tower olympic lighting by Flickr user yoheiyamashita

Tokyo tower olympic lighting by Flickr user yoheiyamashita

TomokoHosaka went to see the Tokyo Tower light up in Olympic colors:

Just got back from Olympics party at Tokyo Tower. Nobody seemed too surprised or disappointed at loss.

misty909 tweeted:

東京オリンピック落選。まあ国内の盛りあがってなさを顧みれば当然だと思うんだけども。

Tokyo lost the bid. Well, it's only natural considering everyone's disinterest in it.

moblogjp refers to 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan:

東京落選かぁ。良い悪いは置いておいて、自分の街でオリンピックとか経験してみたかったな。まあ、ワールドカップがあったから良いか。

Hmmm, Tokyo lost the bid. Good or bad, I wanted to experience the Olympics in my own town. Oh well, we had the World Cup so it's all right.

CO__CO tweeted:

落選してTLが激しく流れるのを見ると、「なんだ。実は日本人オリンピック気になってたんじゃーん(´∀`)」って思うよね。もちろんわたしもその1人。ふふ。

Watching my Twitter timeline go crazy with news about Tokyo losing the bid makes me think “Ah, so the Japanese do give a damn about the Olympics after all!” Of course, I'm one of them. Hehe!

unisindo tweeted:

オリンピックは使われる税金も半端ないと思うんだよなあ。交通・宿泊パニックとか治安の問題も対策しなくちゃだろうし…期間もあるし…世界の選手にとっては日本での開催が一番安心・安全・おいしいんだろうけれどもな?

The amount of tax money used for the Olympics is incredible. And think about the panic over transportation and accommodation, having to secure safety for everybody, and over a long period at that! From an athlete's point of view, I think a Japanese Olympics is the safest, the least worrying and the most delicious.

taninon is thankful for the opportunity to enjoy the giant Gundam statue in Odaiba:

あの東京オリンピック騒ぎのオカゲで実物大ガンダムがみれたんなら、実に有意義だったと言える気がする

We got to see that life-size Gundam because of the Olympic bid so I'd call it a meaningful venture.

tatsuta3 is practical:

不調だ。とっても体調が悪い。オリンピックは落選・・・・。リオデジャネイロになったらまたまた夜更かしの日々だよ。お肌に悪いよ。

I haven't been feeling well. And we didn't win the bid….. Rio de Janeiro means sleepless nights, you know. It's bad for the skin!

koichiro516 comments on the television coverage:

街頭で「残念オリンピック見たかった」とか言ってるやつはなぜ去年北京に行かなかったのか。新しく臨海副都心にスタジアム作るより絶対安いだろw

People on the streets are saying “It's too bad, I wanted to see the Olympics”. Why didn't they go to Beijing last year? It's less costly than a brand new stadium in the Tokyo waterfront subcenter!

Kigyo Hiroshi is wistful:

2016年に東京オリンピックをしたとして、それを観た子供たちは、すごく印象に残るんだろうなぁ、と思っていました。
仮に、2016年時点で、8歳の子供が、東京オリンピックを観て、頑張っているスポーツ選手に憧れをもって・・・その子たちが大人になった時に・・・とてもいい影響を与えそうですよね。
ブラウン管を通して、感じるオリンピックの雰囲気っていいですよね。あれを生で、日本で観ることが出来たら・・・いいなぁ、と思います。

If Tokyo hosted the Olympics in 2016, it would be extremely memorable for the children who watched the games.

For example, if an eight year old watched the Tokyo Olympics in 2016 and admired the athletes… what would happen when that child became an adult? It's sure to have a very positive effect.

Don't you love the atmosphere of the Olympics that you feel through the television screen? If we could watch that live, here in Japan…. that would have been so good.

Shimizu Shuichi looks forward to a successful Olympics in Rio:

日本の経済という意味では、例え東京でオリンピックがなくてもリオでのオリンピックが大成功してくれれば、大いにプラスになります。「負けて残念」なんて言っていないで、リオでオリンピック成功に向けて、日本の技術を活かし、インフラ作り、技術の輸出など大いに協力するべきです。今後8年で莫大なる需要が発生します。

そして南米の経済発展を実現すれば、日本にとっても素晴らしい輸出先になることは間違いありません。

2016年、南米初のオリンピック。オリンピック自体も楽しみですが、ビジネスマンとしては、何よりもオリンピック効果による南米の経済発展がとても楽しみです。

Take the Japanese economy. Even if the Olympics aren't held in Tokyo, it'll be a great advantage for us if the Olympics succeed in Rio. We don't have time to be saying “it's too bad we didn't win the bid”! We should be leveraging Japanese technology by helping to establish infrastructure and export our technology towards a successful Olympics in Rio. There will be a great demand for it over the next eight years.

There's no doubt that South America's economic development would mean an excellent export destination for Japan.

In 2016, the first Olympics will be held in South America. I look forward to the Olympics itself but as a businessman, the economic benefits for South America are very exciting for me.

Half in jest, Hiroshi Yamaguchi asks what comes next:

考えてみれば、そもそもオリンピックなるイベントはそれ自体あんまりエコじゃないわけで、ならばそっちとはさっさと決別して、環境のほうに集中すべきだろう。今の政権の姿勢とも整合的ってこともあるが、なんせ「2016年の東京オリンピックは、地球の未来へのプレゼント」だそうだからな。

オリンピックとれなかったからプレゼントはあげないよ、なんていわないよね?

If you think about it, the Olympics itself isn't a very eco-conscious event. Well then, let's forget about the Olympics and concentrate solely on the environment. Not just because we have a new government that was opposed to hosting the Olympics in the first place but because “2016 Tokyo Olympics is a present for the Earth's future”.

Just because Tokyo didn't get the Olympics doesn't mean no present for the Earth, right?

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