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TOKYO, May 28-- Hosting the Olympic Games gives different opportunities to different countries, offering them the chance to showcase the charisma of each nation. That's the view of John Coates, chairman of the Coordination Commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who visited Tokyo last week to review the city's preparation work for the 2020 Games, and said that Olympic host countries are able to display their best side to the international community. Taking Tokyo's first Olympic hosting in 1964 as an example, Coates said "it was an opportunity to tell the world about a lot of technological advances that have been made in this country." "For Tokyo 2020, reconstruction is the most important thing. It is an opportunity for all of Japan to get involved," Coates said, adding that the Olympic torches will pass through all Japan's 47 prefectures, giving everyone an opportunity to see the torch and be inspired by it. "Many teams are going to travel and prepare games around Japan. That's another opportunity. We've got athletes appearing in many prefectures, which is a great opportunity for young people to see them and also for good cultural exchanges," he said. "We are pleased that we have baseball and softball events in Fukushima," he said, referring to one of the Japanese prefectures hit by the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster. "We are very pleased that material for the torches comes out of material salvaged from Fukushima. I went there late last year and was pleased to meet some children who had lost everything but had been playing baseball ever since. They've got sports and sports heal their wounds," he said. | 
