The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's invasion of China, before ultimately being canceled because of World War II. The 1964 Summer Games were the first Olympics held in Asia, and the first time South Africa was barred from taking part due to its apartheid system in sports.[1] These games were also the first to be telecast internationally. The games were telecast to the United States using Syncom 3, the first geostationary communication satellite, and from there to Europe using Relay 1. [edit] Selection Tokyo won the rights to the Games on May 26, 1959, at the 55th IOC Session in Munich, West Germany, over bids from Detroit, Brussels and Vienna. Here are the voting results for the host selection, from the International Olympic Committee Vote History web page. [edit] Highlights  Yoshinori Sakai lights the Olympic cauldron - Yūji Koseki composed the theme song of the opening ceremony.
- Yoshinori Sakai, who lit the Olympic Flame, was born in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, the day an atomic bomb was dropped on that city.
- Judo and women's volleyball, both popular sports in Japan, were introduced to the Olympics.[2] Japan won gold medals in three judo events, but Dutchman Anton Geesink won the Open category. The Japanese women's volleyball team won the gold medal, with the final being broadcast live.
- The women's pentathlon (shot put, high jump, hurdling, sprint and long jump) was introduced to the Athletics events.
- Reigning world champion Osamu Watanabe capped off his career with a gold medal for Japan in freestyle wrestling, surrendering no points and retiring from competition as the only undefeated Olympic champion to date at 189-0.
- Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina won two gold medals (both for the third time in a row in Team Competition and Floor Exercise events), a silver medal and two bronze medals. She ended her Olympic career and holds the record for most Olympic medals at 18 (9 gold, 5 silver, 4 bronze) since then.
- Australian swimmer Dawn Fraser won the 100 m freestyle event for the third time in a row, a feat matched by Vyacheslav Ivanov in rowing's single scull event.
- Don Schollander (USA) won four gold medals in swimming.
- Abebe Bikila became the first person to win the Olympic marathon twice.
- New Zealand's Peter Snell won a gold medal in both the 800 m and 1500 m.
- American Billy Mills, a little-known distance runner, shocked everyone when he won the gold in the men's 10,000 m. No American had won it before and no American has won it since.
- Bob Hayes won the 100 m title in a time of 10.0 seconds, equaling the world record. He had run the distance in 9.9 seconds in the semifinal but this was not recognized as a world record as it was wind assisted. He went on to win a Super Bowl ring as a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
- Joe Frazier, future heavyweight champion of the world, won a gold medal for the USA in heavyweight boxing.
- This was the last Summer Olympics to use a cinder running track for athletic events, and the first to use fiberglass poles for pole vaulting.
- Unfortunately for Japan, several big international events also took attention during the Olympics, including the sudden removal of Nikita Khrushchev and the first nuclear test in China.
- The nation of Malaysia, which had formed the previous year by a union of Malaya, British North Borneo and Singapore, competed for the first time in the Games.
[edit] Sports Note: In the Japan Olympic Committee report, sailing is listed as yachting.[2] [edit] Demonstration sports [edit] Medal count These are the top ten nations that won medals at these Games: Conventionally, countries are ranked by the number of gold medals they receive, followed then by the number of silver medals and, finally, bronze.[3] [edit] Participating nations A total of 94 nations were represented at the 1964 Games. Sixteen nations made their first Olympic appearance in Tokyo: Algeria, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire (as Ivory Coast), Dominican Republic, Libya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mali, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Northern Rhodesia (which achieved full independence as Zambia on the same day as the closing ceremony), Senegal, and Tanzania (as Tanganyika). Athletes from Libya withdrew from competition after the Opening Ceremony, so a total of 93 nations actually competed. Athletes from East Germany and West Germany competed together as the United Team of Germany from 1956-1964. [edit] Venues  Yoyogi National Gymnasium, designed by Kenzo Tange - Yoyogi Area
- Yoyogi National Gymnasium, just South of the main Olympic Village, housed swimming and basketball events. This complex comprises two structures designed by architect Kenzo Tange for these games, plus ancillary spaces. The main gymnasium was designed to host all of the swimming and diving events. The smaller annex building hosted basketball. A 50 meter practice pool was placed under the main public walkway between the buildings, and is still in use as a public swimming pool.
- The Olympic Village, a redeveloped United States Army barracks originally called "Washington Heights," was located South and West of the Meiji Shrine and North of the Yoyogi National Gymnasium.[4] This area now includes (North to South) the National Olympics Memorial Youth Center, Yoyogi Park,[5], and the NHK Broadcast Center.[6]
- Shibuya Public Hall, just South and West of the National Gymnasium, hosted weightlifting events.
- Nippon Budokan, or Japan Martial Arts Hall, was built to house the judo events, and was used for demonstrations of traditional Japanese sports (Budō) such as kendo (fencing), kyudo (archery) and sumo (wrestling). It is now one of Tokyo's best-known concert venues.
- Komazawa Olympic Park in Setagaya
- Komazawa Stadium hosted track and field events.
- Komazawa Gymnasium hosted wrestling events.
- Komazawa Volleyball Court hosted volleyball.
- Komazawa Hockey Fields (1 & 2) hosted all hockey events.
- Korakuen Ice Palace hosted Boxing events.
- Waseda University hosted Fencing events.
- Baji Koen hosted Equestrian events.
- Hachiōji Velodrome hosted Track Cycling events.
[edit] Outside of Tokyo [edit] Gallery | 1964 Olympics Image Gallery | |
| | Olympic Stadium (track and field) | Komazawa Olympic Park (cycling) | Komazawa Gymnasium & Control Tower | | | Lake Sagami (canoeing and rowing) | Baji Koen (equestrian events) | Tokyo Gymnasium Arena (artistic gymnastics) | | | [edit] See also [edit] External links
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