The Tokyo 2020 Olympics which will take place from July 23, 2021, to August 8, 2021, will be the first gender-balanced games in history.
According to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), almost 49 percent of the athletes participating in the Olympic games will be women. There will be a ground-breaking competition schedule ensuring equal visibility between women’s and men’s events and featuring nine more mixed events than at Rio 2016, raising the overall number to 18. For the first time ever, all 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) will have at least one female and one male athlete in their respective Olympic teams. All 206 NOCs and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team have been encouraged to have their flag carried by one female and one male athlete at the Opening Ceremony.
“The IOC is committed to gender equality in all areas, from the athletes competing on and off the field of play to leadership roles in sports organisations”, said IOC President Thomas Bach. “With only four months to go until the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, the Olympic Movement is getting ready for a new milestone in its efforts to create a gender-equal sporting world – the first gender-balanced Olympic Games in history.”