The honour fell to Naomi Osaka to mild the flame, the beacon of hope the Olympics tries to be.
It marked the professional opening of Tokyo 2020, a 12 months later than planned, and in the midst of a world pandemic.
Perhaps as expected, Friday's opening ceremony used to be now not of the regular ilk. No carnival like Rio, no skydiving monarchs like London, however a extra sombre tone, a sobering reminder that this is a Games taking vicinity in a world nevertheless going through its hardest challenge.
"Today is a second of hope," stated Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
"Yes, it is very distinctive from what all of us had imagined. But let us cherish this second due to the fact subsequently we are all right here together."
This Games is going to be different, dampened through masks, effective exams and the absence of fans. But it is nonetheless the Olympics; nevertheless the best exhibit on Earth, nonetheless faster, higher, improved and now together.
Empty seats, protestors, drones... and Susan Boyle
The opening ceremony had confronted many a scandal earlier than it even commenced on Friday, its director fired on the eve of the Games for ancient jokes about the Holocaust, days after its composer resigned after it emerged he had bullied classmates with disabilities at school.
The ceremony itself was once modest, a reminder of all the world has long gone via but supplied hope for what is to come.
But the lack of a crowd used to be stark as socially distanced and masked athletes - even though some went besides - waved to empty stands, no roar accompanying their march into the stadium.
A 22-strong Team GB delegation was once amongst them, led via flag bearers Moe Sbihi and Hannah Mills of rowing and crusing respectively.
Smatterings of applause sounded from the few inside. Just the media and some 900 dignitaries watched on in the 68,000-seater venue, which include US First Lady Dr Jill Biden and French president Emmanuel Macron.
The build-up to these Games has been long, and it is no longer one that all are welcoming with open arms. Outside the stadium, as the hours ticked down to the begin of the ceremony, thousands of locals had gathered, simmering with exhilaration and delight and determined to be part of in.
But as day grew to become to night, the temper soured, protesters making their voices heard with chants of "stop the Olympics" heard through the few seated in the stadium.
To inside, the place all was once subdued but intimate, a nod to the world's resilience and its togetherness in the battle towards a world threat.
The ceremony additionally paid tribute to the universality of sport, its electricity to unite these of one of a kind cultures and backgrounds and supply a experience of hope, even in the most troubling of times.
"Here is a imaginative and prescient for the future, one that embodies 'unity in diversity', one of peace and recognize for one another," stated Tokyo 2020 president Seiko Hashimoto.
"This is the strength of sport, and an expression of the necessary values of the Olympic movement. This is its essence."
At the coronary heart of the stadium stood the Olympic cauldron, a illustration of the solar atop Mount Fuji. It later opened like a flower, embodying "vitality and hope".
Earlier, the Japanese flag had entered carried by way of athletes, however additionally via healthcare workers, after which a second of silence was once held to consider these lost.
The Olympic rings have been then formed, crafted of trees from timber grown of seeds added via athletes in 1964 - the final time the Games got here to Tokyo.
After the athlete parade - as prolonged as ever - the performances continued. Some 1,824 drones fashioned a revolving globe above the stadium, earlier than musicians such as John Legend and Keith Urban delivered a shifting rendition of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's 'Imagine'.
A relatively shocking inclusion got here after the speeches and the elevating of the Olympic flag - Susan Boyle. Yes, you study that right.
The Scottish singer hasn't made the outing to Tokyo, however her rendition of 'Wings To Fly' - a track launched in 1971 by means of a Japanese folks crew - accompanied the symbolic launch of doves.
Not stay doves, worry not, however as a substitute projections and exceptional consequences acknowledging the "peaceful intent" of the Games.
A wise show of the activity pictograms followed, however the ultimate act used to be reserved for four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka, a illustration of the new Japan, a individual bringing exchange to her homeland.
The 23-year-old used to be delivered the torch via 14 others, a crew offering previous and current athletes, which includes a summer time and iciness Paralympic gold medallist, doctors, nurses and students.
She ascended 'Mount Fuji', lighting fixtures the flame, earlier than fireworks decorated the Tokyo night time sky.
And so to the sport. While some is already beneath way, the first medals will be awarded on Saturday, with 4 Britons taking on the men's biking avenue race and shooter Seonaid McIntosh competing in the women's 10m air rifle.
Swimmer Adam Peaty, rower Helen Glover and the men's creative gymnastics crew are amongst these additionally beginning their campaigns.
And with that, there are simply 4 phrases left wanting to be said.
Let the Games begin.
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