A special plane left Haneda Airport on Wednesday to transport the Olympic flame to Japan.
The plane is jointly operated by Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways. On its body is the motto for the Olympic torch relay, "Hope Lights Our Way," and a pictogram of a runner holding the torch.
Saori Yoshida, a 37-year-old gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Games, and other high-profile people were initially scheduled to be aboard. However, as the Greek government decided to restrict the entry of foreign visitors as a countermeasure against the new coronavirus, the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games canceled their dispatch.
The special plane left for Athens with only its crew, and officials of the organizing committee who have already arrived in Greece will bring the Olympic flame to Miyagi Prefecture on Friday as scheduled.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
