The following is from an article in yesterday's Sankei Shimbun.
This article also proves that the Sankei Shimbun is the most decent newspaper nowadays.
The results of "hospitality"
The Tokyo Olympics have been full of good performances by Asian countries, but what caught my eye was the breakthrough of the Indian team.
The Indian team won seven medals (one gold, two silver, and four bronze), the most since the country became independent in 1947, and the country was abuzz with excitement.
When men's javelin gold medalist Neefi Chopra returned to the airport in the capital of New Delhi, he was even jostled by excited citizens.
I once covered the sports situation in India in 2018.
When I asked athletes and officials what they were worried about at the Tokyo Olympics, they all replied in unison, "Food."
In the past Olympics, the lack of Indian Food in the athletes' village was a source of concern.
It is said that Indians are conservative when it comes to Food and seek familiar tastes even when traveling.
It is partly due to religious influences, with the largest group of Hindus avoiding beef and the smaller group of Muslims abstaining from pork.
However, the athletes' village at the Tokyo Olympics had a wide selection of Indian Food, much to the delight of the athletes.
Lentil curry and biryani (rice cooked with lentils) were prepared, and an Indian newspaper reported an official of the team as saying, "The quality of the Food was excellent, and the organizers made perfect preparations."
It may be that the quality of the Food supported the excellent results.
Many people are eager to find fault with the Tokyo Olympics, but this hidden high evaluation results from "hospitality" that we should be proud of.
(Hiroshi Mori)
