The , officially known as the '''Games of the XVIII Olympiad''', were held in
1964 in
Tokyo ,
Japan . Tokyo, which won the rights to the games in
1958 , had been awarded with the organisation of the
1940 Summer Olympics , but this honour had been passed to
Helsinki because of
Japan 's invasion of
China . The 1940 Olympics were eventually cancelled because of the outbreak of
World War II . The 1964 Summer games marked the first time the Olympics were held in
Asia .
The games were telecast to the
United States using
Syncom 3, the first
Geostationary communication satellite. It was the first television programme to cross the
Pacific Ocean .
- Yoshinori Sakai , who lit the Olympic Flame , was born in Hiroshima on August 6 , 1945 , the day the Atomic Bomb exploded there.
- Judo and Volleyball , both popular sports in Japan , were introduced to the Olympics. Japan won three of the titles in judo, but Dutchman Anton Geesink won the Open category. The Japanese women's volleyball team won the gold medal, with the final being broadcasted live.
- Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina won two gold medals (both for the third time in a row in Team Competition and Floor Exercise events), a silver medal and two bronze medals. She ended her Olympic career and holds the record for most Olympic medals at 18 (9 gold, 5 silver, 4 bronze) since then.
- Australia n swimmer Dawn Fraser won the 100 m freestyle event for the third time in a row, a feat matched by Vyacheslav Ivanov in Rowing 's single scull event.
- Don Schollander ( USA ) won four gold medals in swimming.
- Abebe Bikila became the first person to win the Olympic Marathon twice.
- New Zealand 's Peter Snell won a gold medal in both the 800 m and 1500 m.
- The Women's Pentathlon was introduced.
- American Billy Mills , a little-known distance runner, shocked everyone when he won the gold in the men's 10,000 m. No American had won it before and no American has won it since.
(''Host nation in .'')
- , now known as "National Stadium," was the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies, and for track and field events.
- , or Japan Martial Arts Hall, was built to house the Judo events, and is now one of Tokyo's best-known concert venues.
- , adjacent to (and originally part of) the Meiji Shrine , houses swimming and gymnastics venues designed by architect Kenzo Tange . The Olympic Village, a redeveloped United States Army barracks originally called "Washington Heights," is located on the north side of Yoyogi Park.
- in Setagaya hosted cycling events.
- and ''' Lake Sagami ''' hosted yachting, canoeing, and rowing events.
- , in Nagano Prefecture west of Tokyo, hosted equestrian events.
