This research seeks to look at the issue of multiculturalism in sport in Japan. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, through its vision of Diversity & Inclusion that strives for actions "towards a society where everyone is free to live as who they are", aimed to foster an inclusive environment and raise awareness of unity in diversity among citizens of the world. Due to the scale and the catalytic effects of hosting a sports mega-event such as the Olympic Games, it has often been used to bring about social-cultural changes in the host country. Referring to previous games, the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games was an attempt to reduce their association with (predominantly) bull fighting, the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games focused on culture reconciliation with the Aboriginals in Australia. A sports mega-event like the Olympic Games can not only improve the economy and culture, but it can also be a starting point for social movements in the host country.

Through the Games, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Organising Committee sought to make Japan as diverse and inclusive as possible. The resulting outcome was that Japan's team was its biggest on record and most diverse, including nearly three dozen athletes of mixed parentage. It became clear that the Organiser had intended to showcase Japan's growing ethnic diversity and that Japan has become a global country. This reflects a gradual but profound change in a still largely homogeneous country. The Games featured the biracial NBA player Rui Hachimura and four-time Grand Slam tennis champion Naomi Osaka as the flagbearers in the Opening Ceremony. Yet negative comments emerged on social media, where some claimed that the honour of lighting the Olympic Cauldron (by Osaka) should have gone to a ‘pure’ Japanese. These served as a reminder of how far Japan, as one of the world’s most racially homogeneous countries, must go in embracing change and promoting wider acceptance of multiculturalism, in particular, multicultural athletes in Japan.