New Delhi: The rescheduled 2020 Summer Olympics was officially declared open by Japan’s Emperor Naruhito. Japanese Tennis star Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic cauldron to mark the formal beginning of Olympics 2020. Overshadowed by the pandemic, the opening ceremony was short of glitz, but celebrated as a moment of global hope. The spectators were quiet around the venue following the strict social distancing rules.
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach spoke at the stadium, “today is a moment of hope. Yes, it is very different from what all of us had imagined. But let us cherish this moment. Finally, we are all here together.”
Following this, Japanese Emperor addressed the people and honored the pandemic frontline workers all over the world. Later the Japanese students sang as a prequel to the traditional release of dove.
India’s Deepika Kumari and Pravin Jadhav beat Chinese Taipei’s Chih-Chun Tang and Chia-En Lin in a thriller quarter-final in the mixed event in Archery, setting points at 5-3. On the other hand, Shooters Elavenil Valarivan finished 16th and Apurvi Chandela finished 36th completing six series of 10 shots.
Meanwhile, the badminton player Sai Praneeth will face Ziberman Misha of Israel in Men’s Singles Group Stage (Group D). In men’s hockey, India won 3-2 against New Zealand in a Pool A encounter. In weightlifting, Russia’s Anastasiia Galashina won silver and Switzerland’s Nina Christen secured the first bronze medal of the Tokyo Olympics. Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu representing India won a silver Medal.