The Tokyo Olympics are finally going ahead after the pandemic delayed the event for a whole year. This year’s Games are believed to be among the most expensive ever – with some estimating a total cost of $28 billion. The opening ceremony gets under way on 23 July, marking the official start of the Olympics in which an expected 11,000 athletes will compete for a medal. But where is the Olympic Village where they’ll be staying?
Where is the Olympic Village in Tokyo?
Accommodating thousands of athletes is no easy task. That’s why the Olympic Village has been created to house competitors over the course of the Games.
Of the 42 venues in the Tokyo Games, The Tokyo Bay Zone will contain 16, including the Olympic/Paralympic Village.
The Village is on the Harumi waterfront, which itself is on an artificial island in Tokyo Bay.
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What is the address of the Tokyo Olympic Village?
The official address of the Olympic Village in Tokyo is: 5-chome, Harumi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
Here’s how to get to the Tokyo Olympic Village via the following routes:
- By Bus: Take a Toei bus (05) from Kachidoki Sta. (E17) on Subway Oedo Line, and get off at [Harumi-Futo] (15-min).
- By Train: 20-min walk from Shin-Toyosu (U15) on Yurikamome Line.
The impact of covid on the Village
Covid-19 is a huge obstacle for the Game’s organisers to overcome. This means security and protocol in and around the Olympic Village will be strict.
Athletes will be shuttled in and out of the village and be tested for coronavirus every day. It is claimed 85 per cent of residents in the Olympic Village have already been vaccinated against covid.
However, on 17 July an official connected to the Games became the first resident of the Olympic Village to test positive for covid.
The affected official was placed into 14-day quarantine, Tokyo 2020 said. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) promised the Village would be the “safest place” in Tokyo.
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What have officials said?
Saburo Kawabuchi, mayor of the Tokyo 2020 athletes’ village, said:
“We want this to be an athletes’ village that the athletes will remember, but at the same time they must follow very strict rules about masks.
“Except when eating, training, competing and sleeping, they must wear masks constantly, which is a very trying circumstance for global athletes.”
Athletes will also have to dine alone and maintain social-distancing guidelines. It was originally planned residents would eat in 4,500-capacity dining halls, but that has changed due to covid.
Inside the Village
Along with the residential areas, there is also a shopping area in the Olympic Village. It features a post office, dry cleaner and a bank.
The wooden plaza design draws on Japanese minimalist aesthetics, which follows the theme of using timber throughout the Olympic venues.
After the Games, the Village will be used for apartments for the community.
According to the Bureau of Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, “The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has been working on compiling the model plan of the post-games-use of the Olympic and Paralympic Village. [It] aims to establish a new community where a diverse range of people can interact and live comfortably at the site.”
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‘Anti-sex’ beds theory debunked
One of the more interesting stories to recently emerge from the Olympic Village was the proposed use of ‘anti-sex’ beds.
The cardboard beds were said to be designed to discourage competitors from getting it on during the Games. This was thought to be another anti-covid measure.
Olympics organiser Takashi Kitajima denied the claim, however, saying the beds were simply designed to promote sustainability.
However, one athlete has now debunked the rumours too.
Irish gymnast Rhys McClenaghan filmed himself bouncing on his cardboard bed to prove they wouldn’t collapse under force.
“In today’s episode of fake news at the Olympic Games, the beds that are meant to be anti sex,” he says.
“They are made out of cardboard, yes, apparently they are meant to break under any sudden movements.”
He then proceeds to jump up and down on the beds declaring: “Fake news!”