Tokyo 2020

2011–2012
The official Olympic bid logo for Tokyo 2020 was unveiled on November 30, 2011 after a nationwide competition for an applicable design. The logo's design was created by Joshibi University of Art and Design student, Ai Shimamine.

The emblem exhibits a wreath composed of cherry blossoms, a well-known floral symbol of Japan. It incorporates the colours of the Olympic Rings as well as Purple, which celebrates the Edo period. The circular shape represents diversity with each petal representing the importance and dependencies of the world's people with one another. According to an interview with Shimamine, the wreath was included as she saw that wreaths "carry a message of 'coming back again'." She saw the hosting of the Olympics as an opportunity to reinvigorate Japan through sport.
 * The story behind Tokyo's winning 2020 Olympic logo
 * Ginza X People: Interview with Ai Shimamine

2012–2013


Tokyo was declared an official candidate for the 2020 Summer Olympics on May 23, 2012. To reflect this move, the Olympic Rings were added to the bottom of the logo along with the words 'Candidate City'.

2013–July 2015, September 2015–2016
Tokyo won the rights to host the games at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina. As such, the words 'Candidate City' was removed. This logo remained as an interim logo until the unveiling of the first version of its official emblem. This logo was reinstated in September 2015 as the organising committee took down the first design amid allegations of plagiarism.

During the process of the emblem's redrawing, the committee used a number of wordmarks as placeholders for the upcoming emblem. They were the words 'Tokyo 2020' typed in a sans serif typeface.

1st Generation Olympics
The first version of the games' emblems for both the Olympics and Paralympics were presented via a special event in Tokyo at 7pm of the 24th of July 2015, exactly 5 years before the Olympic opening ceremony.

Both the Olympic and Paralympic symbols were designed by Kenjiro Sano; a graduate of the Department of Graphic Design at Tama Art University and winner of many graphic design awards such as the New York ADC Gold Award and the Cannes Lions Gold.

The symbol was chosen from 104 submissions and explores the fundamental mission of the Olympic movement which is to unite the world through sport. This is shown through various means and techniques in this emblem.
 * The 'T' shape of the emblem was inspired by the typefaces Didot and Bodoni whose highly serifed forms were seen by Sano as to have 'appealing strength and sensitivity'. It embodies the three themes of the emblem's design:
 * Tokyo - the host city of the event and the meeting point of the world's athletes.
 * Tomorrow - the ambition of the event to construct a better, more connected future for the world.
 * Team - the entire world unites as one team.
 * As black is the combination of all colours, the central pillar represents tolerance and diversity regardless of race, nationality or religion.
 * The circle symbolises an all-accepting planet and it's red colour stands for a beating heart. It also not only alludes to the Japanese flag, but the geographic position of Japan on the world map; in the top right corner.
 * The circle re-enforced by the negative space of the two irregular triangles denotes an open, transparent world.


 * The use of gold in the top left triangle pays homage to the last summer games held in Tokyo back in 1964.

The committee continued to defend Sano's work, but became inundated with pressure to pull the design following the multiple plagiarism claims against Sano. The organising committee claimed that "we became aware of new things this weekend and there was a sense of crisis that we thought could not be ignored.". The logo was generally unfavourable to the public as the committee also stated that, "we have decided that the logo cannot gain public support.". It's retraction was also requested by Sano himself saying that he feels the controversy was beginning to damage the reputation of the Tokyo games and that his own reputation was under threat. They conceded that this emblem had become a PR disaster and came to the conclusion to retire it just over a month after it had been instated.

On the 2nd of September 2015, the emblems designed by Kenjiro Sano were officially scrapped. The official website and social media channels have reverted to using the interim emblem by Ai Shimamine for the period until a new emblem can be selected. On the 27th of January 2016, Debie stated that he will drop the suit against the organising committee, citing the mounting legal costs.
 * Tokyo 2020 - Emblems (Original page removed)
 * International Paralympic Committee - Tokyo 2020 launches emblems for the Olympic and Paralympic Games
 * Brand New - New Logo for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games by Kenjiro Sano
 * The Guardian - Tokyo Olympic Games logo embroiled in plagiarism row
 * Reuters - 'No truth' to plagiarism claims: Tokyo 2020 logo designer
 * Asahi Shimbun - Olympic organizers reveal original logo design, deny plagiarism
 * Asahi Shimbun - Tokyo Olympics logo designer now accused of reproducing images without permission
 * Asahi Shimbun - Designer of Tokyo Olympics emblem faces new allegations over zoo logo
 * The Japan Times - Tokyo Olympics logo designer faces fresh plagiarism claim from U.S. artist
 * The Guardian - Tokyo 2020 Olympics logo scrapped after allegations of plagiarism

1st Generation Paralympics
This paralympic emblem was near identical to its Olympic counterpart, but has two black pillars positioned to the sides as opposed to one in the middle. It represents the equal sign '=' showing the Paralympics as an event which shares the same ideals as the Olympics and holds Paralympians to the same standards of the Olympic Games. It may also be interpreted as the Roman numeral for 2, which represents the second time Tokyo plays host to the Paralympics and in inclusion, the only city at the point of writing to host the Olympics and Paralympics in the same year twice.

Like the Olympic emblem it accompanied, the Paralympic emblem was also scrapped on the 2nd of September 2015.

2nd Generation Shortlist (2016)
The new logo was decided by the committee as part of an open competition among Japanese citizens and residents to create the new logo. The submission period ran from the 24th of November to the 7th of December 2015. It was reported that 14,599 submissions were received within the 2 week period; 12,900 of which came from individual designers and primary school students with participant ages ranging from 12 months to 107 years old. Strict copyright checks were conducted by the IOC on all designs and the committee. The shortlist was revealed at the Toranomon Hills Mori Tower at 5pm, 8th of April 2016.
 * Tokyo 2020 - Tokyo 2020 Emblems Selection: The Organising Committee Announces the Establishment of a Preliminary Committee
 * Tokyo 2020 - Tokyo 2020 Games Emblems
 * Bangkok Post - Tokyo 2020 gets new logo proposals after plagiarism scandal
 * Inside the Games - Tokyo 2020 to reveal replacement logo contenders on April 8
 * Tokyo 2020 - Opinions on the Shortlisted Tokyo 2020 Games Emblem Designs

2nd Generation Olympics



 * Tokyo 2020 - Games Emblems
 * Creator's Website
 * Gizmodo - The New Tokyo 2020 Olympics Logo Hopefully Isn't a Rip-Off

2nd Generation Paralympics
Both the Olympic and Paralympic emblems were unveiled at the same time. Both emblems use the same 45-box system to create a circular shape and the same colour. The Paralympic Emblem is used in unison with the Olympic emblem on social media and their website.