On Monday, organizers for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games unveiled the event’s new logo, called “Harmonized Checkered Emblems.”
Inspired by a traditional motif, “Harmonized chequered emblems” are selected as the emblems of the #Tokyo2020 Games! http://pic.twitter.com/sFtYcc8ODg
— Tokyo 2020 (@Tokyo2020) April 25, 2016
In a press release, Tokyo’s Olympic organizers said that the design captures the spirit of Japan along with Tokyo’s vision for the games:
Chequered patterns have been popular in many countries around the world throughout history. In Japan, the chequered pattern became formally known as “ichimatsu moyo” in the Edo period (1603-1867), and this chequered design in the traditional Japanese colour of indigo blue expresses a refined elegance and sophistication that exemplifies Japan. Composed of three varieties of rectangular shapes, the design represents different countries, cultures and ways of thinking. It incorporates the message of “Unity in Diversity.” It also conveys the fact that the Olympic and Paralympic Games seek to promote diversity as a platform to connect the world.
The logo, created by designer Asao Tokolo, was one of 14,599 designs submitted by people from all over the world. Tokyo 2020 Emblems Selection Committee narrowed the submissions down to four logos and then selected the winning design after receiving opinions from more than 40,000 people.
The open competition—which spanned seven months—to design the logo for Tokyo’s 2020 Olympic Games was the first ever in Olympic history. The idea for the competition came after the designer of the Tokyo 2020’s first logo, Kenjiro Sano, was accused of plagiarizing his design.
In September 2015, the BBC reported that Olympic organizers did not agree that the design was stolen, but scrapped the logo—an unusual move—because of widespread criticism:
“We’re certain the two logos are different,” Toshio Muto, director general of the Tokyo organising committee, told a news conference.
“But we became aware of new things this weekend and there was a sense of crisis that we thought could not be ignored.
"We have reached a conclusion that it would be only appropriate for us to drop the logo and develop a new emblem. At this point, we have decided that the logo cannot gain public support.”
Social media users’ reactions to the logo were divided.
Some have said the design is modern and an improvement over the previous logo; critics say the artwork is “expressionless” and lacks inspiration:
@Tokyo2020 As for the winning design, it’s way better than the last one you had.
— B.M. Miku (@BM_Miku) April 25, 2016
@Tokyo2020 traditional, but not inspirational !
— Openbook56 (@openbook56) April 25, 2016
Much better than the initial Tokyo 2020 Olympics logo… #Concept #Tokyo2020 https://t.co/yHcpQeQqlE
— rowanwallace (@ro1wallace) April 25, 2016
@Tokyo2020 This design is unconventional, modern, memorable, and the only one that stood out from the group. Great choice. #Tokyo2020
— Daniel Archer Dallas (@dannyadallas) April 25, 2016
.@Tokyo2020 You picked the ugliest logo out of the 4. Big mistake. #Tokyo2020emblems
— Cheesemeister (@Cheesemeister3k) April 25, 2016
@MCamposAlarcon @Tokyo2020 Or a Japanese funeral.
— Cheesemeister (@Cheesemeister3k) April 25, 2016
@Tokyo2020 It has just set the logo for the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. I have never seen such an ugly logo and expressionless like that!
— Cleiton Fujimura (@CleitonFujimura) April 25, 2016
@Tokyo2020 looks more like an abstract modern art piece than an Olympic logo 🤔
— Theo Asher (@theoash29) April 25, 2016
Though the selected design is receiving mixed reactions, the competition got many people involved after a deluge of negative press. Along with allegations of copyright violation, Japan’s Olympic organizers faced criticism for several planning problems, including scrapping the original stadium design, The Guardian reported:
In July [2015], it abandoned British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid’s design for a new main stadium – which was to be used for both events – after costs soared to $2bn (£1.3bn), almost twice the initial estimate.
Construction is now a year behind schedule, forcing the Olympic minister, Toshiaki Endo, to concede that it might not be possible to meet the International Olympic Committee’s January 2020 deadline for completion of the new stadium.
John Coates, vice president and chair of the International Olympic Committee for Tokyo 2020, applauded the committee’s decision to stem the tide of negative PR by crowdsourcing designs and opinions for its new logo:
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The new Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 emblem symbolizes important elements of the Tokyo 2020 Games vision and the underlying concepts of achieving personal best, unity in diversity and connecting to tomorrow. I congratulate the Tokyo 2020 team for the inclusive process that led to this selection. The public engagement in the selection process is another sign of growing interest in the 2020 Games. Interest and excitement will continue to build, in Japan and globally, after the official handoff to Tokyo 2020 at the close of the upcoming Olympic Games Rio 2016. The Tokyo 2020 emblem will become a familiar symbol to people around the world.
What do you think of the logo for Tokyo 2020, Ragan readers? What decision would you have made to quell the outcry over the first logo? What do you think of crowdsourcing generally, and on a global scale?
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