Hundreds of people had crowded into the Komazawa gymnasium, one of several public viewing
venues in Tokyo. Some had arrived as early as 10.00pm local time even though the announcement would only be made past 5.00am local time.
Tokyo will now be the fifth city to have the honour of hosting the Olympics more than once, the others being Paris, Athens, Los Angeles, and London, which has hosted the Games three times.
The last time the Olympics was held in Tokyo was in 1964. The nation had recovered from its defeat in World War II and was making great strides as a modern nation. Then, the Games marked Japan's reacceptance into the international community and symbolised its recovery.
This time, it's almost the same narrative. Japan is rebuilding after a massive magnitude 9.0 earthquake and a tsunami struck its north east coast in 2011. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, crippled in the disasters, is still leaking radioactive water into the ocean daily.
Sports Director for Tokyo's bid, Yuko Arakida said, "…we hope that by hosting the Games it will bring inspiration and solace to the children of the area (Fukushima)."
It was also this ongoing nuclear crisis that threatened to derail Tokyo's status as favourite.
The Tokyo team was banking on Japan's reputation as a "safe pair of hands".
The Japanese have the experience and know-how to deliver on big sporting events. It has hosted one Summer Olympics, two Winter Olympics, and co-hosted the 2002 Footbball World Cup with South Korea in 2002.
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