The municipalities that served as host towns for the Olympics and Paralympics are continuing exchanges with foreign athletes as one legacy of the Tokyo Games.
In a bid to further strengthen ties, some cities decided to host athletes for the 2024 Paris Olympics and others began discussions about becoming sister cities.
Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture, announced it will host one athlete every six months before the Paris Olympics from South Sudan, whose training facilities are less developed.
The pre-Games training camp for five athletes from South Sudan lasted nearly two years, an exceptionally long stay due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, the athletes' accommodations and food expenses were financed by the hometown tax contribution system, which raised over 30 million yen to cover the costs.
The South Sudanese were trained by residents who are former track and field athletes. They also spoke about South Sudan at high schools and participated in local sports events, deepening ties during their stay. The decision by Maebashi to invite South Sudanese before the Paris Games has encouraged the athletes, with one saying, "It will help us discover the next generation and give us courage."
An international relations coordinator from Jordan will be assigned from October to Noshiro, Akita Prefecture. The city became a host town for the Tokyo Games in 2019 and set up visits by Jordanian athletes to Noshiro and held online film screenings.
The pre-Games training camp was canceled due to the pandemic, but an online link was established with the Jordanian Embassy during the Games and about 50 residents cheered on Jordanian athletes. Noshiro is considering exchanges in the fields of wind power generation and agriculture in the future.
Ota in Gunma Prefecture received a proposal of a sister city relationship from Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi in southeastern Africa. The city has sent fire trucks and ambulances to Lilongwe and hosted a training camp for eight members of the Malawian team before the Tokyo Games.
Ulemu Msungama, a minister of youth and sports, visited the city during the Games and expressed gratitude to the city for providing a good environment under difficult circumstances. He also proposed becoming sister cities.
Ota Mayor Masayoshi Shimizu was favorable to the idea.
"We want to continue to help each other and have a long relationship," Shimizu said.
Some athletes visited host cities after finishing their competitions.
In August, two Costa Rican track and field athletes met with about 30 elementary and junior high school students in Matsukawa, Nagano Prefecture.
"I believe sports transcends national borders and energizes everyone," said Andrea Vargas, who ran hurdles with the children and gave a lecture on her athletic career.
The town is planning to hold an online exchange event in October.
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