Plagiarised logos, mobile phone medals and sports for 'the kids': Here's what you need to know about Tokyo 2020

A year out from the Olympic flame reaching Toyko, the stage is mostly set for the 2020 Olympics.

Japan is world renowned for being organised - even minuscule train delays are a source of national shame.

So it should come as no surprise that a majority of the stadiums and facilities fans will use next summer have already been completed.

But which sports will debut in 2020, what else is Tokyo doing differently and - despite the best efforts of officials - what's causing controversy?

Which new sports will be held at the Games?

Skateboarding is one of a quintet of sports debuting in Tokyo. Credit: AP

The Toyko 2020 will feature 33 different sports. The usual events will take place, alongside five additions which were selected by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2016.

The new sports will be: baseball and softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.

The addition of the sports is a bid by the IOC to attract a younger audience - sports like skateboarding could do just that.

Squash won't get a place at the 2020 event, despite strong calls for it to be included in the Games for multiple years.

ITV News Asia Correspondent Debi Edward takes you on a whistle-stop tour of three stadiums in Tokyo

How are these Games different to ones held in the past?

Prizes for the Games will also be different to previous renditions.

Japan is known for being one of the planet's most technologically advanced countries. For the Tokyo 2020 games, medals will be made out of recycled mobile phone parts.

Old laptops, mobile phones and tablets will be given to competitors to celebrate their win - albeit being crushed down into a more familiar form.

  • ITV News Asia Correspondent Debi Edward looks ahead to Team GB's preparations for Tokyo 2020

Japan intends to strike a good impression with the world, showing itself as an open and inclusive country - despite the fact it's notoriously difficult for non-natives to navigate, both linguistically and culturally.

But there is one area officials cannot make more accommodating: the weather.

It's not unheard of for the Japanese capital to have highs of more than 30C in the summer; great for sunbathing, not so great for running marathons.

For that reason, endurance running events will start at 6am in a bid to avoid the uncomfortable heat and to help athletes maintain peak performance.

Kansai International Airport was inundated by a typhoon in 2018. Credit: AP

The decision was taken after medical advisers said running in such conditions could "cause deaths".

Typhoons are also a cause for concern.

In August 2018, Japan was hit by Typhoon Jebi, inundating Kansai International Airport in Osaka, around 300 miles from the nation's capital.

What have Team GB athletes said about the games?

What controversy has there been?

In Japan, there has been controversy and criticism over the timing of events.

American broadcaster NBC has purchased the rights to air the Games in the United States.

Television bosses are keen to hit peak audiences, reportedly leading to a spat with Japanese broadcasters over the scheduling.

Swimming finals will be held in the morning, meaning they are on at a perfect time for American audiences - and a less-than-perfect time for Japanese audiences, despite the event being popular in the Asian country.

Organisers have had to redesign the logos after a plagarism scandal. Credit: Tokyo 2020

The Games have also had two logos, following a plagiarism scandal.

The original logo, released in 2015, was found to be too similar to one for a theatre in the Belgian city of Liege.

Organisers of the Games were then forced to do a redesign, bringing out the new logo for 2020 after a series of emergency committees.

Finally, there have been some concerns over radiation levels following the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

While the organisers claim the Olympic sites are safe, others say there are high levels of radiation present - reportedly up to 20 times higher than safe levels in areas.

Ticketing proves to be a thorny issue

A ticket lottery was massively oversubscribed. Credit: AP

Ticketing invariably throws up arguments at every Games - and Tokyo is no different.

Phase one of a ticket lottery or ballot has been concluded with millions of Japanese missing out.

The initial ballot was massively oversubscribed and that's before tickets are offered elsewhere in the world.

While there are plans for a second ballot in Japan, it's not clear how many additional tickets will be on offer but it's likely to be nowhere near enough to satisfy demand.

Organisers say there are about 7.8 million tickets for all events next summer - but a quarter of those are set aside for sponsors, guests, various international federations.

An additional quarter will be for overseas sales. As some 7.5m Japanese people applied for 3.2m tickets in the first lottery, the numbers just don't add up.

Prices are also high: according to reports, the opening ceremony on July 24 features the most expensive ticket - 300,000 yen ($2,700).

The most expensive ticket for the closing ceremony is 220,000 yen ($2,000).

What will happen with the stadiums after the Games?

Japan's new national stadium has been completed, it will host the Tokyo 2020 opening and closing ceremonies. Credit: AP

Japan remains proud of the legacy from the infrastructure created for the last time it hosted the Olympic Games, in 1964.

Weaving through Tokyo are a network of roads, serving as lifelines more than 50 years after they were first constructed for the Games.

The Shinkansen - better known as the bullet train - also remains as an icon of Japan's post-war endeavour as a host nation.

While the intention to provide a long-lasting legacy for the Games is certainly prevalent, the action to do so has not been outlined.

Organisers will be hoping to avoid what many would deem as a failure of continuing to use facilities after previous Games.

In Athens, many Olympic venues have been left abandoned after the 2004 games. Credit: AP

The problem of legacy has long dogged host cities.

Athens hosted the Games in 2004. It promised an exciting set of new sports facilities for the Greek capital - but the Games were mired with problems.

Organisers failed to have all the venues ready on time, leading to last-minute preparations in the days before the Games. It appears those behind Tokyo 2020 have leapt this hurdle, learning lessons from their predecessors.

Fifteen years on from the Games in Athens, venues stand empty. Efforts to rejuvenate them dimmed as Greece's economy went into meltdown and crashed just a few years later, leading to the abandonment of many of the multi-million pound venues.

What about London 2012's legacy?

London 2012's legacy has, for the most part, been a success. Credit: AP

London 2012 venues have been put to slightly better use. The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park at Stratford, east London, is now a hub for nature lovers and cyclists.

The Olympic Stadium has been renamed as the London Stadium and provides a new home for West Ham United football club, while being adapted for a host of other events, most recently Major League Baseball.

The Here East Olympic site is home to a media hub.

The athletes village now spins a profit for landlords after being converted into plush flats.

But the site isn't without its own white elephant. Built at a cost of £210 million, Stratford International station has still never had an international train call at it.

It attracts a relatively small number of passengers, too - just 2.5 million in 2017/18.

The station has been underused, leading to Transport for London changing which fare zone it lies under in a bid to get more people to visit the former Olympic Park.