On March 12, the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee announced the locations where the Olympic flame, lit in Greece, will be displayed as the "Flame of Recovery" in the three prefectures affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake, as well as the venue for the Grand Start of the Torch Relay. This decision was made in consultation with the three affected prefectures, the Reconstruction Agency, and the International Olympic Committee.
The "Flame of Recovery," aligning with the Tokyo Olympics torch relay concept "Hope Light Our Way," will be shown to residents in the disaster-affected areas who are working hard on recovery efforts, ahead of the torch relay itself.
The flame, arriving at the Japan Air Self-Defense Force Matsushima Base in Miyagi Prefecture on March 20, 2020, will be displayed at six locations in Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima Prefectures in that order until the 25th. On the 26th, the torch relay will start from the National Training Center J-Village in Fukushima Prefecture, touring nationwide over 121 days.
J Village opened in 1997 as Japan's first national soccer training center. While it served as a training camp for the Japanese national soccer team, it became a base for disaster response following the March 2011 earthquake and nuclear power plant accident.
Since then, it has been reborn as a "symbol of Fukushima's recovery," with the addition of an all-weather training field and accommodation facilities.
Torch Relay Details: https://tokyo2020.org/jp/games/torch/olympic/
