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TOKYO 2020 UNVEILS NEW EMBLEM SYMBOLISING UNITY IN DIVERSITYOn 25 April, the Organising Committee for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 unveiled the new emblem for the Games, selecting a design with links to Japanese tradition and the Olympic concept of unity and diversity. The emblem presentation was the culmination of an inclusive process that attracted 14,599 design proposals from around the world and welcomed opinions from the public, with more than 40,000 people sharing their views on the final shortlist. The selection, submitted by Tokyo-based designer Asao Tokolo, features a circular pattern of varying rectangular shapes in traditional Japanese indigo blue, and is intended to represent the coming together of different countries, cultures and ways of thinking.IOC Vice-President John Coates, the Chair of the Tokyo 2020 Coordination Commission, said: “The new Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 emblem symbolises important elements of the Tokyo 2020 Games vision. The public engagement in the selection process is another sign of growing interest in the 2020 Games.”The Organising Committee has also announced plans for the Tokyo 2020 Japan House, the national hospitality centre for the Olympic Games Rio 2016, which will showcase the best in Japanese culture and sport, and provide a glimpse of how the Tokyo 2020 Games will look and feel. The Tokyo 2020 Japan House will be located in the Cidade das Artes (City of Arts) in the Barra Zone, home to the Olympic Village, the Olympic Park and the International Broadcasting Centre/Main Press Centre complex. It will be open from 5 to 21 August during the Games.PYEONGCHANG LOOKS TO ENHANCE ACCESSIBILITYPYEONGCHANG 2018 ANNOUNCES TICKET PRICESThe Organising Committee (POCOG) for the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 is aiming to enhance accessibility in restaurants and accommodation in the host city through its Accessibility Recognition Programme. To make it easier for everyone – including the physically impaired, pregnant or elderly – to get around during the Games, POCOG is encouraging local businesses to join the programme by improving facilities with financial aid from host city authorities.On 11 April, the Organising Committee (POCOG) for the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 announced its ticket prices. POCOG expects to issue a total of 1.17 million tickets, 70 per cent of which will be sold nationally and 30 per cent abroad. The ticket sales revenue is estimated at around KRW 174 billion (approximately USD 145 million). To ensure that the Games are accessible to as many people as possible, ticket prices will start at KRW 20,000 (approximately USD 17), and 50 per cent of competition tickets will cost less than KRW 80,000 (approximately USD 67). Public sales will go live on POCOG’s website in October 2016. OLYMPIC CHAMPION NAMED 2018 AMBASSADOROlympic speed skating gold medallist Lee Sang-hwa (KOR) has been appointed as an Honorary Ambassador for the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018. “With less than two years to the start of the Games, I will do my very best both as an athlete and as Honorary Ambassador to attract sports fans to the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games,” said the women’s 500m world record-holder.The PyeongChang 2018 Organising Committee (POCOG) has also announced it will operate its “2018 PyeongChang House in Rio” on Copacabana Beach during the Olympic Games Rio 2016. The space will give visitors the chance to envision the atmosphere of the next Olympic Winter Games through cultural exhibitions, musical performances and demonstrations of winter sports using Virtual Reality technology.Left The new Tokyo 2020 emblemAbove Ambassador Lee Sang-hwaOLYMPIC REVIEW 17