Record-Breaking Rain Fell In Tokyo On Thursday, More Expected; Advertising Campaing Targets Tokyo Commuters
By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor
TOKYO — The thunder and lightning, once it started Thursday afternoon, was unrelenting in Tokyo. And the rain fell so hard it broke records, according to local news reports.
From inside the Tokyo Gymnasium, where the accreditation process was taking place, booming thunder reverberated inside the cavernous arena.
In the span of an hour, 5.25 inches of rain was measured in parts of Tokyo. The localized flooding caused several of the city’s subway lines to shut down.
More wet weather is forecast during the first week of the World Athletics Championships, which begin Saturday morning with the 35-kilometer racewalks.
Japan National Stadium has a roof that covers most of the seating, but rain does fall on the track and infield.
Days 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9 have morning sessions as well as evening sessions. Most days the evening session starts after 7 p.m., after the sun has gone down. That should make for pleasant temperatures, but the air is still muggy.
But enough about the weather.
Public displays, whether at Haneda Airport or signs throughout the city, have put the World Championships in view in the world’s largest city (37 million).
An ad campaing by Adidas Japan has plastered Noah Lyles’ image on signs in metro stations and short commercials play on a loop on subway cars with the tagline, in English, “You Got This.”
The Olympic 100 meters champion from Paris last summer, and a well-known fan of Japanese anime, is looking forward to a productive Championships. Lyles is currently ranked second in the world in the 100 meters behind Kishane Thompson of Jamaica and second in the 200 behind Olympic champion Letsile Tebodo of Botswana.
Lyles has the clutch gene, however, and has a knack for winning big races in the final stride.
According to World Athletics, 37 of the 41 athletes who won gold medals at Budapest in 2023 are entered in Tokyo.
The U.S. contingent, comprised of 141 athletes, is aiming to equal of exceed the total of 29 medals it won two years ago and 34 in 2024 at the Paris Games.
One of the intiguing competitions that takes place early is the men’s shot put.
Ryan Crouser, who won an emotion-filled Olympic gold medal in Tokyo in 2021 in the wake of his grandfather’s death, is on the U.S. roster despite not throwing at all during the 2024 season due to injury. Crouser exercised his…
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