The Yoyogi National Stadium, located adjacent to Yoyogi Park, staged the swimming, diving and basketball events during the Olympic Games Tokyo 1964 and its distinctive design – a hybrid of traditional Japanese architecture and western modernist aesthetics – has made it an architectural icon. At the time it received a special citation and award from the International Olympic Committee for being “one of the finest sports buildings in the world”, and it inspired the design of the Olympic Stadium for the Munich 1972 Games.
Since 1964, it has been used as a regular sports and entertainment venue for events ranging from elite international sporting competitions to live concerts. The Gymnasium will once again play host to Olympic competition during Tokyo 2020, when it will hold the Olympic handball competition.