Japan unveils largest overseas Winter Olympic team

TOKYO - Japan's largest-ever overseas Winter Olympic team was unveiled at a ceremony here on Saturday.

Yasuhiro Yamashita, president of the Japan Olympic Committee (JOC), handed over a national flag to chef de mission Ito Hidehito, who passed it to speed skater Arisa Go, who will be the female flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 on February 4.

A total of 124 athletes, 49 men and 75 women, are among the 262-member delegation, exceeding the 123 sent to PyeongChang four years ago.

Team captain Miho Takagi vowed that the athletes will overcome difficulties to achieve good results.

"It was difficult for us because of the pandemic in the past two years," the speed skater said. "But thanks to the efforts from the society and the people around us, we are able to celebrate this moment today. We will do our utmost to ensure that each athlete can perform at their best."

The Japanese athletes will enter 109 events, seven more than at the PyeongChang Games when they made history by winning four gold, five silver and four bronze medals.

Ito did not want to predict how many medals Japan would win in Beijing because their preparation had been disrupted by the pandemic.

"But hopefully we can do better than four years ago," Ito said.

Japan's Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko were also present at the ceremony.