JAKARTA -- The 2018 Asian Games closed on Sunday after 465 sports events had been held, with about 12,000 athletes from 45 countries and regions competing in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, since the official opening on Aug. 18. With the competition coming to an end, Indonesia hopes to host the 2032 Olympics and Japan is preparing for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The Asian Games were originally to have been held in Vietnam. But due to a lack of financial resources, among other reasons, Vietnam withdrew as host of the major sports event four years ago. Indonesia then became the host country and hastily started preparations.
During the closing ceremony held at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta on Sunday, President of the Olympic Council of Asia, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, praised Indonesia for its "incredible work in such a short space of time," which received wild applause from the audience.
Although there have been some difficulties during the Games, such as national flags falling down while the national anthem for a gold medal winner had been playing and chronic traffic congestion, there have been no major problems during the 16-day event.
Hosting the Asian Games delighted Indonesians. The country had set a target of winning 16 gold medals and placing in the top 10 of the medal tally. In the end, Indonesia earned 31 golds and ranked fourth in the medals standing, far exceeding its target and the four gold medals the country won at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
Among the 31 gold medals, 14 were from the newly added discipline of Pencak Silat, a martial art believed to have originated in Indonesia.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who is seeking reelection next year, on Saturday announced that the country would bid for the 2032 Olympics after meeting with the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach.
At the closing ceremony on Sunday, OCA President Sheikh Ahmad said, "Jakarta has the capability to host any major international games," with Bach sitting close by in the stadium.
Earlier on Sunday, Bach told media, "With the success of this Asian Games, Indonesia has laid a very solid foundation for such a candidature."
Eyeing 2020 Tokyo Olympics
While Indonesia is eyeing the Olympics in 14 years' time, Japan is accelerating its preparation for the next Olympics.
"After becoming an Asian champion, athletes of other countries will have thoroughly studied Japanese athletes," Yasuhiro Yamashita, chief of the Japanese delegation, said at a press conference on Sunday. "Keeping the current performance level will not be good enough."
Japan has set a target of winning 30 gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics. "Even for those who produced good results here, further improvements are needed toward 2020," Yamashita said.
At the press conference, Yamashita also said, "The success of female Japanese athletes was quite remarkable." At the Games, Japanese men won 34 gold, while women won 35 gold.
One of the successful female athletes was swimmer Rikako Ikee, who won the MVP award for the Games after winning eight medals, including six gold.
When she was asked about the 2020 Tokyo Olympics during the MVP award ceremony on Sunday, Ikee said, "Two years [of preparation for the Olympics] might sound like a long time, but I consider it short." She added, "I will try hard to have my best performance in my home country."
Measures against heat
During the 2018 Asian Games, measures against heat were one of the main pillars for organizing the event. According to Muhammad Buldansyah, a senior official of the Indonesia Asian Games Organizing Committee, some events were scheduled to start early in the morning to avoid the heat, with both the men's and women's marathons starting at 6 a.m.
"We also provided plenty of drinks and ice cubes to athletes and spectators to avoid dehydration," Buldansyah said.
The high temperature for Jakarta during the Games was mostly in the lower 30s C, considerably milder than Tokyo, which has been struck by a heat wave this summer.
During the Asian Games, I had the chance to talk to some of the Indonesia volunteers while covering various sports events. They knew that Japan had a cold winter season, but they were stunned when I told them that the temperature could reach as high as 40 C. One volunteer replied, "It's like a country in the Middle East."
Outside of Japan, not many people are aware that the high temperature in Tokyo can get extremely hot and humid. Thus, detailed measures against heat are definitely needed in preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
