Tokyo Olympics 2021: Aussie athletes deliver joy to millions in lockdown, says Ian Chesterman

‘People said it couldn’t happen and it did’. And for that reason, an emotional Australian chef de mission Ian Chesterman gave the Tokyo Games and the Australian team a mark of 11 out of 10.

Australian chef de mission Ian Chesterman was overcome with emotion talking about the success of the Olympic team and how it has delivered joy to Australians enduring lockdown.

Chesterman said he believed no other nation could have pulled off an Olympics during a pandemic, paying tribute to the Japanese government and organisers and noted that just like Australians, the Japanese people were glued to their television star riding the triumphs of their home team.

Japan, which won 27 golds, finished third on the medal table behind China and the US. Australia finished sixth, just behind Great Britain.

The swimmers set the standard again for the Aussies.

Fighting back tears, Chesterman gave the Games and the Australian team a mark of 11 out of 10 because the Tokyo Olympics were a games that “people said couldn’t happen and it did’’.

“I think our team has created an environment for their time,” he said.

“What has amazed me was their resilience and determination, when they got whacked, they stood back up again. That resilience served everyone really well. The people who do best are those who feel comfortable being in the uncomfortable, that was the approach we had to take.’’

When asked why he did the job, Chesterman paused for a long six seconds before saying, with a laugh, “somebody has to do it, it's a great privilege, an incredible privilege to be here and witness the incredible achievements, but also to witness the camaraderie, the sense of togetherness of these Games, but once every four years is definitely enough”.

Australia enjoyed success in so many different sports.

Chesterman, 62, has successfully led the Australian winter Olympic teams since the 1998 Nagano Games. His calm and forgiving approach towards the 486-strong Australian team earned him the gold medal for patience and supporting Australian athletes’ wayward village and plane antics.

Chesterman said: “It’s well exceeded my expectations coming here, I thought it would be really much tougher, much harder dealing with no crowds, much harder with the Covid controls, but actually it has worked out really well.

“For me I have been really thrilled with the fact the Games have gone so smoothly, but also thrilled the athletes felt that when they left here they felt they had an incredible experience.

“These are the games of our times, they are challenging times and our team was ready to perform in these times and that’s fantastic.”

Ian Chesterman was delighted with the Aussie results.

Australia’s Tokyo tally of 17 gold medals equals the previous high mark achieved in Athens 2004 and the total medal tally of 46 to date is the third-highest of all time.

He said 99 members of the Australian team took home a medal from 15 sports and 20 disciplines.

Chesterman said the Australian triumph here started with the swim team.

“There was no doubt in my mind success builds success, if you get a roll with early success it builds self belief in everyone’’ he said.

He was particularly mindful of the Australians back home undergoing difficult lockdowns and that Monday morning will be particularly difficult without the Olympics to impart “great joy’’.