Opening ceremonies and national identity: Beijing 2008 and Tokyo 2020

ABSTRACT The opening ceremonies of sports mega-events are privileged for transmitting discourse about the past and constructing a national identity. Although it is difficult to determine how vital opening ceremonies are in the long term or how much they are ever remembered beyond the media coverage, these ceremonies project national images of the countries that organize them by reinforcing identities. Based on the theoretical assumptions of constructivism, this article contrasts the Beijing 2008 and Tokyo 2020 opening ceremonies, discussing how the creation of these narratives reflects the aspirations to build national identities linked with an idealized past. Also, this article analyses how these events illustrate how China and Japan present their identity in an international scenario. Finally, the conclusions emphasize the importance of opening ceremonies beyond the limited sports context and their profound political implications.