Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games Bid Launch Ceremony held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Hall.

The Prime Minister said in his address,

"It was in 1959 that Tokyo won the right to host the 1964 Olympics. It had only been 14 years since the end of the war; only 14 years since Japan lost the war. Japan was so much poorer than it is today. How could a nation so poor be successful in bidding for the Olympics? I believe that behind this success was the public's determination and burning passion to bring the Olympics to Tokyo. 
Take for instance Mr. Isamu Wada who was a second generation Japanese-American residing in Los Angeles. In response to a request from my grandfather Nobusuke Kishi, who was then Prime Minister, out of his own pocket Mr. Wada toured ten Central and South American nations for 40 days to lobby for their support for Tokyo's bid. Mr. Wada later said, 'If the Olympics are held in Japan, Japan may well leap forward. It is my mission and responsibility to deliver courage and confidence to the people of Japan.' I believe that a determination to see Japan, his fatherland, shine once again is what drove Mr. Wada. Without Mr. Wada's efforts I believe that the bid may not have been successful. In fact this did not only apply to Mr. Wada. If even one of the other individuals who worked so hard to bring the Olympics to Tokyo had not been there, we would not have been successful.
Today 800 of you have gathered here. Let each of us fulfill our mission and responsibility and let us hear the announcement on September 7 in Buenos Aires, '2020 Tokyo!' I too will be there in Buenos Aires.
Let us all work together to bring the 2020 games to Tokyo!"