Gold medal Olympian Kosuke Kitajima, who took up golfing since retiring from competitive swimming following the 2016 Summer Games, hopes to watch recent Masters champion Tiger Woods represent America in Tokyo 2020’s golf competition.

First, Kitajima has to get a ticket.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Organizing Committee announced at a press conference on April 18 that the official ticket website is now launched, and Japan residents can apply for the upcoming ticket lottery from 10:00 on May 9 through 23:59 on May 28.

“You can have a look at all of the sporting events that will take place. You can see the schedule and also check out the prices. The website is really easy to use,” says Kitajima, who is serving as ambassador for Tokyo 2020 ticket sales. “I hope as many people as possible are able to apply and we have a full stadium for each event.”

Before applying for the ticket lottery, Japan residents must first register an ID. Hidenori Suzuki, Tokyo 2020 senior director of ticketing, says more than 2 million people have already registered an ID, more than any other previous Olympic Games.

“Huge interest surrounds ticketing for the Tokyo 2020 Games,” says Suzuki. “A staggering number of people have registered for their ID.”

How to Apply

During the lottery application process (May 9–28), Japan residents with a registered ID can apply for as many as 30 tickets, the maximum number of tickets that will be allocated per person. Suzuki said how early people apply during the ticket application process will not affect the lottery results.

Applicants can search tickets for the 33 sporting competitions by date, event or venue. Ticket requests can be amended at any time up to the May 28 deadline. After May 29, ticket requests are set in stone.

The lottery results will be announced on June 20. Applicants will receive an e-mail to their registered e-mail address. Results will also be available on the official ticket website under the My Ticket category.

Full payments for tickets must be made by July 2. Payments can be made by credit card or cash payments can be made at select convenience stores (up to ¥300,000). Payments must be made in a one lump sum.

If a lottery applicant does not receive their first choice of ticket, they will be entered in the lottery for a ticket that is one seat category lower, should seats be available. Applicants are also able to select a second choice ticket at the time of the lottery application, however second choice tickets cannot be for the same sporting session.

For general tickets, people can apply for a max of two tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies, four tickets for medal sessions and a max of six tickets for non-medal events.

Remaining tickets will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis starting in fall 2019. People living outside of Japan can purchase tickets through their country’s authorized ticket resellers from June 15.  The sales launch date in each territory may vary.

A further phase of ticket sales will start in the spring of 2020, offering first-come, first-served sales on a global basis.

Courtesy of Tokyo 2020

Tokyo 2020 Event Schedule

Earlier this week the organizing committee also announced details of the Olympic competition schedule. Tokyo 2020 will host a record 33 sports and 339 events and will run from July 24 until August 9, 2020.

Preliminary events will kick off on July 22, 2020, two days before the Opening Ceremony. Rowing and archery events will be held on the day of the Opening Ceremony. The first medal event – women’s 10m air rifle – will be held with on July 15, the day after the Opening Ceremony.

August 1 and 2, which are being called Super Saturday and Golden Sunday, will be the most action-packed days of the Olympics. A total of 21 medal events are set to take place on Super Saturday, followed by 26 medal events on Golden Sunday, including the women’s marathon, the men’s athletics 100m final, men’s and women’s gymnastics events, and the men’s tennis singles final.

The Japan squad may be participating in the highly anticipated men’s 4 x 100m relay set to take place on the evening of August 7.

August 8, the day before the Closing Ceremony, will constitute another Super Saturday, featuring no fewer than 30 event finals.

The final day of the Olympic Games, August 9, will commence with the men’s marathon. The streets of Tokyo are expected to be lined with crowds as the Games draw to a close.

For details of the schedule, visit: hyperurl.co/Tokyo2020Schedule

Feature image courtesy of Tokyo 2020