With less than a month left until the start of the Tokyo Olympics, organizers and athletes are making final preparations. Originally set to be held last year, the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics were postponed until this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Organizers in Tokyo have stated that the games will definitely be taking place, despite ongoing protests and public-health concerns. While overseas spectators have been barred, locals will now be allowed to attend events, with venues limiting attendance to 50 percent of capacity. Gathered below, images of athletes around the world, as they train, compete, and prepare for their long-delayed chance at an Olympic medal.
Preparing for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics
Hints:
View this page full screen.
Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.
-
![A paralympic athlete is seen in mid-air during a long jump attempt.]()
Read moreDesmond Jackson of the United States competes in the men's long jump ambulatory finals during the 2021 U.S. Paralympic Trials at Breck High School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on June 18, 2021. #
Christian Petersen / Getty -
-
![A person holds a lit Olympic torch, as a half-dozen teammates watch in the background.]()
Read moreJapanese torchbearer Azusa Iwashimizu, a member of Japan women's national football team, carries the Olympic torch ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games during the torch relay grand start outside J-Village National Training Center in Naraha, Fukushima Prefecture, on March 25, 2021. #
Philip Fong / AFP / Getty -
![An athlete turns, seen just as they are ready to release a discus.]()
Read moreValarie Allman competes during the preliminaries of the women's discus throw at the U.S. Olympic track-and-field trials in Eugene, Oregon, on June 18, 2021. #
Charlie Riedel / AP -
![A person windsurfs on a cloudy day.]()
Read moreKiran Badloe sails his RSX during training for the Tokyo Olympics on January 15, 2021, in Playa Blanca, Spain. #
Richard Langdon / Oceanimages / Getty -
-
![An Olympic shooter poses with her rifle.]()
Read moreKatarina Kowplos poses during a portrait session with members of the Australian Tokyo Olympic Games shooting squad at Brisbane International Shooting Center on June 4, 2021, in Brisbane, Australia. #
Peter Wallis / Getty -
![A person runs on a track inside a large, empty stadium.]()
Read moreAn athlete competes in a test event for the Tokyo Olympics, at the National Stadium in Tokyo on May 9, 2021. #
Charly Triballeau / AFP / Getty -
![A man trains by scaling an indoor climbing wall.]()
Read moreGerman sport climber, World Cup winner, and Tokyo Olympics competitor Jan Hojer trains in a climbing hall as sport climbing awaits its Olympic debut in the disciplines of speed, bouldering, and lead, in Hilden, Germany, on June 4, 2021. #
Thilo Schmuelgen / Reuters -
-
![Swimmers dive at the start of a race.]()
Read moreEric Anderson dives off the starting block in the men's 50-meter freestyle preliminary races during the U.S. Olympic team trials swimming competition at CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska, on June 19, 2021. #
Rob Schumacher / USA Today Sports / Reuters -
![A table tennis player poses with a paddle and ball, appearing to burst through a hole in a large sheet of paper.]()
Read moreCroatian national table-tennis team member Tomislav Pucar poses during a portrait session in Zagreb, Croatia, on May 28, 2021. #
Igor Kralj / Pixsell / MB Media / Getty -
![An athlete runs while smiling and holding her arms wide after winning a race.]()
Read moreSha'Carri Richardson celebrates winning the women's 100-meter final on day two of the 2020 U.S. Olympic track-and-field team trials at Hayward Field on June 19, 2021, in Eugene, Oregon. #
Patrick Smith / Getty -
-
![A skateboarder practices in a concrete skate park.]()
Read moreOlympic skateboard qualifier Tyler Edtmayer, of Germany, gets inverted at the deep end while training at the Cradle Skatepark on August 7, 2020, in Brixlegg, Austria. Skateboarding will be an official Olympic event for the first time at the Tokyo Olympics. #
Adam Pretty / Getty for LUMIX -
![A boxer has his glove adjusted by a trainer inside a gym.]()
Read moreYoel Finol, a boxer and Venezuelan Olympic silver medalist, is assisted by his trainer Jorge Serpa during a training session for the Tokyo Olympic Games at a gym in Medellin, Colombia, on June 8, 2021. #
Joaquin Sarmiento / AFP / Getty -
![A swimmer is seen in a pool, with water smoothly flowing over their face and head.]()
Read moreKim Herkle of SV Cannstatt competes in the women's 200-meter breaststroke heat during day three of the German Olympic qualifications at the Europa Sportpark on April 18, 2021, in Berlin, Germany. #
Ronny Hartmann / AFP / Getty -
-
![A fencer leaps with his sword, posing for a portrait.]()
Read moreMarcus Mepstead of Great Britain poses for a photo to mark the official announcement of the fencing team selected to Team GB for the Tokyo Olympic Games in Brooklyn, New York, on May 19, 2021. #
Elsa / Getty for British Olympic Association -
![A gymnast leaps high above a balance beam.]()
Read moreJordan Chiles practices on balance beam during a training day before the U.S. Olympic team trials for gymnastics in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 23, 2021. #
Lindsey Wasson / Reuters -
![A runner falls over a hurdle as competitors move across a water hazard during a steeplechase run.]()
Read moreJordan Mann (right) falls into the water as he and Jordan Cross compete in the first round of the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase during day four of the 2020 U.S. Olympic track-and-field team trials in Eugene, Oregon, on June 21, 2021. #
Patrick Smith / Getty -
-
![A team of swimmers move together in a pool, each wearing a swimsuit with a cat's face on it.]()
Read moreThe team from Greece performs during the Olympic Games Artistic Swimming Qualification Tournament 2021 at Piscina Sant Jordi in Barcelona, Spain, on June 10, 2021. #
Albert Gea / Reuters -
![Rowers navigate across a large, quiet lake.]()
Read moreCroatia rowers Martin Sinković and Valent Sinković are seen during rowing practice on Peruća Lake, ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, near Sinj, Croatia, on June 19, 2021. #
Antonio Bronic / Reuters -
![A runner poses at the starting line.]()
Read moreNoelle Lambert poses for a portrait during a practice session ahead of the 2021 U.S. Paralympic trials at Breck High School on June 16, 2021, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. #
Christian Petersen / Getty -
-
![A BMX rider trains on his bicycle.]()
Read moreU.S. Olympic BMX rider and defending gold medallist Connor Fields trains for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on his local BMX track in Henderson, Nevada, on May 22, 2021. #
Mike Blake / Reuters -
![A team of handball players gather together to celebrate, crouching, smiling, and raising their arms.]()
Read moreMontenegro's players celebrate their victory after the Tokyo Olympics women's qualifying handball match between Montenegro and Norway in Podgorica, Montenegro, on March 19, 2021. #
Savo Prelevic / AFP / Getty -
![Two swimmers react together in a pool after a race.]()
Read moreSimone Manuel reacts with Abbey Weitzeil, (right), after winning the women's 50-meter freestyle final during wave two of the U.S. Olympic swim trials on June 20, 2021, in Omaha, Nebraska. #
Charlie Neibergall / AP -
-
![Several runners round a bend during a race in a stadium.]()
Read moreKamar Etyang leads the pack during the men's 1,500-meter Olympic trials at Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi, Kenya, on June 19, 2021. . #
Monicah Mwangi / Reuters -
![A person surfs atop a medium-sized wave.]()
Read moreLeilani McGonagle of Costa Rica rides a wave in the women's main round during the 2021 ISA World Surfing Games in El Tunco Beach, El Salvador, on June 5, 2021. McGonagle qualified for the Tokyo Olympic Games. #
Marvin Recinos / AFP / Getty -
![Two men face off during a basketball match.]()
Read moreDelgernyam Davaasambuu of Mongolia squares off against Thibaut Vervoort of Belgium during the semifinal men's match of the FIBA 3x3 Olympic Qualifying Tournament 2021 between Belgium and Mongolia at Kossuth Square in Debrecen, Hungary, on June 6, 2021. #
Istvan Derencsenyi / BSR Agency / Getty -
-
![A man practices karate in a dojo.]()
Read moreTwo-time world champion Venezuelan karate athlete Antonio Díaz, who qualified to participate in the Tokyo Olympic Games, is pictured during a training session at his dojo in Caracas on June 3, 2021. #
Yuri Cortez / AFP / Getty -
![An athlete sits on the track beside her young daughter.]()
Read moreAllyson Felix celebrates with her daughter Camryn after finishing second in the women's 400-meter final on day three of the 2020 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials in Eugene, Oregon, on June 20, 2021. #
Steph Chambers / Getty -
![A group of 13 women stands beside a swimming pool, posing for a portrait.]()
Read moreThe Australian women's water-polo team poses during the Australian Tokyo Olympic Games water-polo squad announcement at St Andrew's Anglican College Aquatic Center in Sunshine Coast, Australia, on May 24, 2021. #
Albert Perez / Getty -
-
![A runner trains on a track in the rain.]()
Read moreBrazilian track athlete Alan Crystian exercises during a training session at NAR (High Performance Sports Center) on February 27, 2021, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Crystian has already qualified and is preparing to participate in the Tokyo Olympics. #
Buda Mendes / Getty -
![A night view of lit-up Olympic rings, with part of Tokyo's skyline in the background.]()
Read moreThe Olympic Rings are displayed by the Odaiba Marine Park Olympic venue on June 3, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. #
Yuichi Yamazaki / Getty -
![A night view of a large stadium lit up in multiple colors.]()
Read moreThis picture shows the Ariake Arena, venue for the volleyball and wheelchair-basketball events, lit up with Olympic colors on April 14, 2021, to mark 100 days until the start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, in Tokyo. #
Behrouz Mehri / AFP / Getty -
-
![People work alongside a large outdoor stadium.]()
Read moreConstruction workers are seen around a spectators' seating area in preparation for the Tokyo Olympic Games at Ariake Urban Sports Park in Tokyo, Japan, on June 22, 2021. #
Issei Kato / Reuters -
![An overview of a canoe slalom course and seating area for spectators.]()
Read moreA spectator seating area overlooks the Kasai Canoe Slalom Center on June 24, 2021, in Tokyo. #
Carl Court / Getty -
![A person stands in a road among many multi-story residential buildings.]()
Read moreA reporter looks at the buildings that will host the athletes during the Tokyo Olympic Games during a media tour of the Olympic Village in Tokyo on June 20, 2021. #
Behrouz Mehri / AFP / Getty -
-
![Women take a selfie atop a tall building with the Tokyo Olympic stadium visible in the background.]()
Read moreWomen take a selfie with the Tokyo Olympic stadium in the background on June 9, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. #
Carl Court / Getty
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to [email protected].