The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games has revealed the three finalists for the mascots who will represent the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Tokyo 2020’s Mascot Selection Panel chose the shortlist from a total of 2,042 entries that had been submitted from the public as a part of a competition that took place earlier this year. The unveiling of the mascots took place at Kakezuka Elementary School in Shibuya Ward, and Tokyo 2020 organizers have placed a big emphasis on the involvement of children in the final decision of which set of mascots will chosen to represent the Games.
As the next stage of the selection process, 6.5 million schoolchildren from every elementary school in the country, as well as students at international schools and overseas Japanese schools, will have the chance to look at the three sets of designs and choose their favorites. This selection process will take place between December 11 and February 22, 2018.
Ryohei Miyata, chairperson of the Tokyo 2020 Mascot Selection Panel explained the importance of having children take part in the selection process: “We decided to encourage children to participate in the preparations for the Tokyo 2020 Games by having them select the mascots, as our children represent a future that Tokyo 2020 wants to embody through the Games. We hope that many schools and classes will take this opportunity to help shape the Games.”
So without further ado, here are the three shortlisted designs, accompanied by a bit of detail about the various characters. Which one would you vote for?
