Raw Japan

Tokyo lights go out

Tokyo’s failure to win the 2016 Olympic bid triggered bemused shrugs and a rush for the exits at Tokyo Tower when the result was announced well past midnight on Saturday morning. In truth, no one at the bid party in the Tower seemed to really expect Tokyo to win.

Drummers drummed, cheerleaders rustled pom-poms and a seeming endless string of noisy TV celebrities took turns at the microphone to drum up some Olympic fever among the 400-plus partygoers.

But Tokyo officials had hardly splashed out and the event quickly descended into farce. There was no champagne on ice, just beer.

Odds-on favourite Chicago’s early elimination drew gasps, certainly bigger than those when Tokyo went out moments later in the second round, when confusion reigned supreme.