The Tokyo National Stadium, which will be called the Olympic Stadium when the Games begin, was designed by architect Kengo Kuma. Built for the Olympics, it replaced the stadium that was previously in the same location, which was demolished in 2015. It has a capacity of 68,000 spectators and will be used for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Games, athletics competitions and the women’s football final.

Designed by Kenzo Tange for the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, this arena has a complex reinforced concrete structural system that allows zenithal lighting to enter the playing field. Generally, the building hosts basketball matches but during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics it will be the venue for handball matches.

This sports arena was built from 1986 to 1990 by Fumihiko Maki and replaced a sports facility built in 1954 on the same site. The complex steel roof is the most significant technical innovation of the building. Moreover, it allows the creation of large interior spaces, including an Olympic-sized swimming pool and various training rooms. For the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, the central arena will be used for table tennis/ping pong competitions.

The Nippon Budokan is one of Japan’s most famous sports buildings. Built for sumo and martial arts competitions on the occasion of the 1964 Olympics, it has hosted all kinds of concerts and events over the years. During the Tokyo 2020 Games, it will be used for judo and karate competitions. 

This arena is a good example of Japanese post-modern architecture. From a technological point of view, it has a roof that can be opened or closed as needed with an automated system. Generally home to the Japan Open and the Pan Pacific Open, it will host tennis competitions during the Tokyo 2020 Games.  

This building is located in Saitama, in the Greater Tokyo Area, and was designed by Dan Meis and Niken Sekkei at the beginning of the new millennium. It has obvious references to the deconstructivism which characterized the transition from the Nineties to the 2000s. Generally used for martial arts or other functions (such as concerts and conventions), during the Tokyo 2020 Games it will host basketball competitions.

Designed by Fumihiko Maki, an architect linked to the Metabolist Movement, this building mainly serves as a convention center and is rarely used for sport. Thanks to temporary bleachers, it will host fencing, taekwondo and wrestling competitions during the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Generally considered the most important baseball stadium in Japan, this building is located in Yokohama, in the Greater Tokyo Area, and it has a capacity of 34,000 spectators. In addition to baseball, it will host softball competitions during the Tokyo 2020 Games. 

The Sapporo Dome will host the preliminary men’s and women’s football matches during the Tokyo 2020 Games. As is often the case during the Olympics, the stadiums for football matches are located throughout the country: this arena, in fact, is located in the homonymous city on the island of Hokkaido. Built for the 2002 World Cup, it is particularly interesting from a technical point of view: the dome is made up of a complex shell-shaped structure and the internal playing field can be moved outside using an airlift system.

This facility, where all swimming, diving and synchronized swimming competitions will take place, is one of the few buildings built specifically for the Tokyo 2020 Games. It will have a capacity of 15,000 spectators during the Olympics, but will later be reduced to 5,000 in order to use it as a public sports center, rather than an arena.

The Olympic Village for the Games of the XXXII Olympiad was built on the artificial island of Harumi Futo. The construction of the athletes’ accommodation, slowed down by the pandemic crisis, was completed in May 2021. The two tallest towers of the master plan will be built at a later stage.

One of the public courtyards between the buildings for the athletes’ accommodation in the Olympic Village.

The “Pavilion Tokyo 2021” initiative was promoted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Arts Council and the Watari Museum of Contemporary Art.