An opening ceremony was held Thursday for the Japan Olympic Museum in Tokyo, which aims to showcase the history and significance of the games in the buildup to the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The museum, which opens to the public Saturday, will also feature exhibitions displaying Olympic medals and the torches used in previous torch relays.
"This will be the base for the Olympics. We will make it a place loved by the people," Japanese Olympic Committee chief Yasuhiro Yamashita said.
The museum is located on the first two floors of the Japan Sport Olympic Square in Shinjuku, which houses executive offices of the JOC, the Japan Sport Association and other sports organizations.
The various installations include a theater room where visitors can watch the opening ceremonies of past games, and an area where people can experience certain Olympic competitions using digital technology.
There is also a display with the engraved names of Japan's so-called phantom representatives who missed out on the 1980 Moscow Games due to Japan's participation in the U.S.-led boycott amid the Cold War.
Thursday's ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by 1992 Olympic speed skating bronze medalist Seiko Hashimoto — who was installed Wednesday as minister in charge of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games — and Tokyo Organising Committee President Yoshiro Mori.
