Hosting Tokyo Olympics, Paralympics chosen as top domestic news in Japan in 2021

From Kyodo

December 31 2021

TOKYO – Hosting the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics amid the coronavirus pandemic has been picked as the top domestic news story of 2021 by senior editors of Kyodo News and its member or subscriber newspapers and broadcasters.

The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, postponed for a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, were mostly held behind closed doors to stem the spread of infections.

Amid concern among the Japanese public over staging the Summer Games during the pandemic, when the capital and other parts of the country were under a COVID-19 state of emergency, Japanese athletes excelled by winning a total of 58 medals, including a record 27 gold, in the Olympics and 51 medals, including 13 gold, in the Paralympics.