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© Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.500,000 cheer Japan's Olympic medalists in Ginza parade
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the-grouch
I agree... what about the athletes that did get medals, aren't there efforts noticed? Why aren't the cheered for going thousands of miles away and trying their best? Oh well.... I guess it means TRY BETTER NEXT TIME AND BRING THE MEDALS HOME AND YOU'LL PARTICIPATE IN THE PARADE.
JeffLee
Half a million people?!....in this heat?!?! And this was a Monday.
smithinjapan
And they deserve all of the applause. My only complaint with this kind of thing is that ALL of Japan's athletes, medalists or not, should have been there and gotten the applause. Seems a bit of a slap in the face to them.
LostinNagoya
Ok. They're heroes. But how long will Japan associate sports with 3/11? Move ahead Japan!
papigiulio
Agreed with smith and thegrouch. Surely the people who didnt even get a medal also deserve some support and viceversa as I assume many people also cheered for them even though they lost.
ah well huge congrats to the medalists.
the-grouch
I meant to say that...I agree... what about the athletes that did NOT get medals, aren't there efforts noticed? No one is really talking about them and their efforts. Anyway, go ahead and dock me for it but it is true. It is not all about winning right? Its about going out there, giving it all you have and having a winning attitude about the outcome, either win or lose. AND JUST TO ADD, 3/11 had nothing to do with the outcome of medals. Their spirits, Zippie or any other dead celebrity did not travel to England to help in the Olympics.
JDB829
Good job ladies and gents! You are ALL winners!
lucabrasi
@the-grouch
Exactly what I thought when I read this.Seems a bit mean-spirited like this. Would it rally cost so much more in terms of money and effort to honour all the Olympians?
lucabrasi
Maybe they could take a couple of the non-medallists out the back and shoot them, "pour encourager les autres" ;)
Dennis Bauer
@cracaphat sports/olympics has become about winning( read money), not the honor of attending it
ultradork
They train and compete to be chosen and go to the Olympics to win medals. The ones who don't will get a hug from their friends and relatives. Or are you the type of person who thinks all tests should be pass/fail and there should be no grading in school, no report cards?
lucabrasi
@ultradork
Merely by qualifying for the games they've achieved something that 99% of the population couldn't even dream of. And that should be recognised. They're all straight-A students before the games even begin.
missray
It's amazing that the same posters who complain that all athletes should be honored whether they win a medal or not and claim that winning a medal should not be given a higher priority than not, are the same that feel it's gold or nothing and that the medals count should be based on the amount of golds won. While I agree that they should have rented out about twenty more buses to accomodate the hundreds of other Japanese athletes who didn't win a medal to participate, it should also be said that all medals count whether you win a gold, silver, or bronze.
cubic
Only the medallists should be there. The winners should be showered with praise; the losers should be taunted and booed until our throats are sore! (HJS)
TokyoGas
I love the Olympics.
JeffLee
Japan placed 50th, in terms of per capita population, which is an OK result, but not great. My own country placed higher and no celebration there came even close to the half million screaming flag-wavers in Ginza today.
Is the earthquake really the reason for this, erm, rather over-the-top reaction? I wonder if the nationalist fervor whipped up over the islands in recent days is also driving it.
http://www.medalspercapita.com/
smithinjapan
cubic: "allists should be there. The winners should be showered with praise; the losers should be taunted and booed until our throats are sore! (HJS)"
That kind of mentality, and the pressure it puts on the athletes are the reason why Japan never takes the haul home that it promises before the games. They ALL need to be congratulated and recognized -- they are all Olympians.
yasukuni
Amazing turnout. And it's touching to see so many of you thinking about the ones who didn't get medals. I must admit I never thought about it.
But now that you all mention it, maybe now we know why so many of them cry when they don't get a medal.
Foxie
It is mindblowing that so many people turn up for a parade but hardly anyone turned up for anti-nuclear demos. The athletes must feel overwhelmed.
Ranger_Miffy2
I want to know if the same people who calculated 500,000 at this rally also calculate the 10,000-200,000 range counts we get from the anti-nuclear demos!!!
And, yeah, I think all Japanese Olympians should be in this parade. They are all awesome, and only a few get medals.
Graham DeShazo
This is great, but I still don't want the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Too expensive, Too much trouble.
herefornow
LostinNagoya -- sorry, but I don' agree that they are "heroes". Heroes are the men who stayed behind and risked their lives to try to stabalize Fukushima despite the obvious risk. They should be having a parade, and 5 million people sould show up. Some folks who are good are table tennis or gymnastics and as a result got over-blown mdia coverage in a country renowned for that aren't heroes. Especailly since ones like Ai-chan have made millons for playing their sport and endorsements.
edojin
Had a great view of the Ginza from the Yurikamome Line at Shimbashi as the parade moved down the main street. Sure were lots of people there ... and half a million sounds about right. As the vehicles slowed down while passing under the monorail, the Olympians were busy removing their jackets and fanning themselves. So not only were the fans along the route hot, but those riding atop those open buses must have been cooking, too. One thing, that procession sure did move fast through Ginza Dori. Wonder how many Olympians the spectators actually saw ... ??
avenger
Japanese fans are the best supporters.
Serrano
What a crowd! What a crowd!
Seawolf
24 comments and only one mentions the connection to 2020?! This was just a huge PR-event for the Tokyo Olympics, and yes I think the figures are overrated for the same reason, to be able to tell the olympic comitee that "the people from Tokyo stay behind our bid for the Olympic Games". Did a rough calculation, when the route is just 2.000m long, and one person's width is about 50cm, you would have to stand 62 rows deep on each side of the road. Or did they start in Nihonbashi, that would make more sense?!
darknuts
Why was this done on a Monday? The weekend would have been better...
risugirl
Love parades!!!
Daijoboots
Yes yes I'm bored of hearing about that whole 311 drag too. Both of you need to go up to a place like Kisennuma where one of the men's fencing silver medallists is from, to see how positive and energising their performance was to the local community, where people now watch tv in tiny pre-fab temporary units after 15,000 homes were destroyed and over 1,000 people killed. Associate or move on? I suggest you acquaint or move yourself up there.
Shumatsu_Samurai
To those of you who said all the athletes should have been recognised, I ask this:
Have you ever called for a parade in honour of a football, baseball or other sporting team that was kicked out of a tournament at the earliest possible moment?
I'm sure lots of athletes did well and didn't get medals. But the Olympics works on a system where medals are only given out to the top competitors. Like it or not, the world agrees with that system. If you get a medal, that's celebrated. If you don't get a medal, you may receive or continue to receive state funding. But you can't expect more than that.
I would say it would also be unfair on those athletes who got medals to be lined up with those that didn't, because their achievements would be diluted.
cubic
smithinjapan
Chill out, it was just a legendary Homer Simpson quote. They were all congratulated enough before the games, who cares.
nath
They all deserve the celebration, professional athletes work harder than any of us ever will and for them to have achieved such a great thing deserves the applause of the people who watched and cheered them on.
studiokdc
completely agree with seawolf...this was a just a PR event for the 2020 olympic bid. although it's possible they fudged the numbers a little bit, i do think a large number of people were genuinely happy to go and see the medalists. i just think it it's a little sad that they were being somewhat used for mr. ishihara's 2020 pipe dream...
choco chang
gambarre nippon!!!