Olympics & Paralympics

Japan to bid to host 2025 Deaflympics

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
The Japanese women’s volleyball team celebrates after winning the gold medal at the 2017 Deaflympics in Turkey.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:00 JST, September 9, 2022

The Japanese Federation of the Deaf (JFD) announced Thursday that it would present a bid centered on Tokyo to host the 2025 Deaflympics in the summer of that year.

The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf will select the host city during its general congress on Friday and Saturday in Vienna. If successful, it will be the first time for the event to be held in Japan.

Like the Olympics and Paralympics, the Deaflympics are held once every four years, with both summer and winter editions.

The first Summer Deaflympics was held in 1924. Brazil hosted the 24th edition in May this year, drawing more than 2,400 athletes from 73 countries and regions. Japanese athletes took home 30 medals, the most ever for the country.

Japan’s 2025 bid calls for the event to be held Nov. 15-26, with the opening and closing ceremonies at the stadium in Tokyo’s Komazawa Olympic Park. In addition to Tokyo, competition is planned for Fukushima and Shizuoka prefectures.

“We want to add to the movement and legacy of the Olympics and Paralympics, and spur further changes to bring about a more inclusive society,” JFD President Fujisaburo Ishino said.