2016 Rio Paralympics: 2020 host Tokyo to undergo major overhauls to provide better disability access

TOKYO’S 2020 Paralympic Games will force an overdue drive to open up the city’s confined streets, doorways and buildings to benefit people with disabilities.

Yuriko Koike says Tokyo will learn from Rio’s experience.

TOKYO’S 2020 Paralympic Games will force an overdue drive to open up the city’s confined streets, doorways and buildings to benefit people with disabilities, Governor Yuriko Koike says.

Speaking in Rio ahead of Monday morning’s (EST) closing ceremony at Maracana Stadium, Koike said hosting the next Paralympics had fast-tracked essential upgrades to Japan’s capital.

The changes were a direct response to the needs of residents, athletes and visitors who were vision impaired, wheelchair users or had other mobility challenges including prosthetics.

“We have developed roads that are too narrow,” Koike said.

“This is a legacy of Tokyo. Furthermore, the doorways are not wide, the ceilings are low in some typical housing. As we welcome athletes as well as spectators from all over the world at the venues, we must overcome these challenges.”

Many of Tokyo’s cramped roads have no footpaths, meaning the bitumen must be shared by cars and pedestrians.

The move to widen roads would mean major overhauls including dismantling utility poles and replacing them with underground power lines.

Yuriko Koike says Tokyo has plenty of challenges to overcome.

“Going toward the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, I’d like to expand the width of the roads by doing away with the utility poles so we can provide accessibility to everyone,” Koike said.

The improvements would have wider benefits to Tokyo’s ageing population. By 2025 the nation’s 75-and-over sector is forecast to hit 25 per cent.

Tokyo will become the first city to become a two-time Paralympics host, following its 1964 Games staging. The Paralympics began in 1960.

The Rio Games faced intense scrutiny in the countdown to their opening ceremonies, with organisers plagued by missed deadlines, budget blowouts and service cutbacks.

Despite concerns, the Games themselves have exceeded expectations.

Koike said Tokyo would learn from Rio’s experience.

“In the Olympic and Paralympic Games it seems there are budget overruns occurring everywhere,” she said.

“It is important to review the (Tokyo 2020) budget at this time so that the fiscal state of the Games can be sound. The Games budget will be subject for further review.

“In anything we would like to earmark budget for training for athletes, to focus on athlete-first thinking.”

The on-field focus will be especially important, given Japan had yet to win a gold medal this Paralympic Games.

Originally published as 2016 Rio Paralympics: 2020 host Tokyo to undergo major overhauls to provide better disability access