Back in the 30s, the capital of Japan was supposed to be the site of the twelfth Olympiad in 1940. But due to the outbreak of World War II, the Games did not take place. Twenty years later, Tokyo re-nominated itself, but the IOC gave preference to Rome. It was only in 1964 that the 18th Summer Olympic Games were first held on the Asian continent.
Preparations for the Tokyo Olympics were serious: many dilapidated houses were demolished, new highways, bridges, overpasses were built, modern sports facilities were erected, old halls, swimming pools, and stadiums were restored.
5140 athletes participating in the Games from 93 countries gathered in Tokyo. The Olympic Commonwealth has replenished with a new large group of countries: Algeria, Cameroon, Congo, Malagasy Republic, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Zanzibar, Trinidad, Tobago. For the first time, athletes from the Dominican Republic, Nepal, and the Mongolian People's Republic performed. The Republic of South Africa was suspended from participation in the Games for racial discrimination in sports.
The Tokyo Olympic Games program was very extensive. Judo was added to it, as well as women's and men's volleyball. In all types of competitions, the competition between the participants has noticeably increased. During the Games, athletes set 77 Olympic records, 35 of them became world records.
The athletes of the USSR performed less successfully than in Rome and Melbourne, although they managed to maintain the primacy in the unofficial team event. They scored 607, 8 points, the Americans - 581, 8. The USSR team won 96 medals, of which 30 gold, 31 silver and 35 bronze. Team USA received 90 medals: 36 gold, 26 silver and 28 bronze.
Soviet weightlifters performed brilliantly. Rudolf Plyukfelder and Alexey Vakhonin (Shakhty), Vladimir Golovanov (Khabarovsk) and Leonid Zhabotinsky (Zaporozhye) received gold medals, Vladimir Kaplunov, Viktor Kurentsov and Yuri Vlasov - silver medals.
The first team place was also won by boxers from the Soviet Union, having received 3 gold, 4 silver and 2 bronze medals. The best were Muscovites Boris Lagutin and Stanislav Stepashkin, as well as Leningrader Valery Popenchenko, recognized as the best boxer of the Olympic tournament.
The first gold medal in the history of Soviet sailing was won in Tokyo. Its owner was 16-year-old Galina Prozumenshchikova from Sevastopol, who swam the fastest two hundred meters breaststroke. Eighteen-year-old American swimmer Donald Schollander received four gold medals and set a new world record - he swam 400 meters freestyle in 4 minutes and 12, 2 seconds.
Athletes showed themselves very well at the Olympics. They set eleven world records and improved 71 Olympic records. Three gold medals were won by the Press sisters: in discus throw, shot put and pentathlon. For the first time in the history of the Olympics, marathon athlete Ababa Bikila managed to win for the second time in a row. He also set a new world record at the Tokyo Games.
Athlete Lyudmila Pinaeva won her first personal Olympic victory while competing in kayaking, having overtaken rivals from Austria and Romania by 0.76 seconds. The legendary athlete from the USSR Vyacheslav Ivanov also became a winner in kayak rowing, although this victory was not easy for him. Two weeks before the competition, he fell seriously ill, then there were problems with the boat, but the athlete found the strength and courage to fight hard to the end and won the gold medal.
In general, the Tokyo Olympics passed as it should be for sports competitions of this level: with great passion, an iron will to victory and the complete dedication of most of its participants.
