“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover”
Disclaimer: ths is not a travel journal entry per se, as it is October 29th and I am writing about my Olympic Games experience, specificallyt refering to Jul 19th and 20th. I sincerely wish I could have kept a travel diary while at the Olympics, maybe even posting every day, but had neither time nor energy for that . I am going to do my best to depict the events as I best remember it.
D-Day
Jul 19th, 5:00am: check-in luggage, carry-on trolley, back pack, travel documents including my Pre-Valid Card (PVC)…all in front of the door. Venice airport bound.
Side note: to be able to clear immigration at the Tokyo Airport, all members of the accredited press have to show a screenshot of our approved Activity Plan. Activity-what? The Activity Plan, in short, includes personal information, type of quarantine requested, accommodation name/address and a list of all planned permitted destinations (games venues) we intend to visit. All this had to be submitted through an online platform called ICON. I had submitted this as early as one possibly could (June 3rd) and the Plan has been approved….today at 4:30 am 😨. This is such a HUGE RELIEF as it should seriously speed up airport clearance. I heard stories from journalists stuck 8+ hours at the airport upon landing in Japan. Fingers crossed…
Entry requirements 101
Special Games call up for special measures. Special measures including screening
testing, restrictions on where one can go, hygiene, mask wearing and physical
distancing measures.
As outlined above submitting a detailed Activity Plan through the Infection Control Support System (ICON) and having it approved is one of the pre-travel requirements. Daily reporting of our body temperature through ICON, starting 14 days before arrival in Japan, is another.
Also, we had to download and install the Online Check-in and Health report App (OCHA). We will need to show a specific OCHA screen at check in/boarding and to the Japanese Quarantine authorities on arrival. Without this, we will not be
able to board or enter Japan
Airport check-in
Jul 19th, 7:41am: well arrived at Venice airport where I will hopefully catch my flight to Frankfurt. From there I will hop on board for Tokyo Haneda. Arriving on time at the airport is normally where all the travel stress ends, but this time is a very different ball game. The check-in employee made sure I have my proper ID document (passport) and hard-copy certificates of two negative covid-19 test results carried out at approved facilities, also with their corresponding japan-approved certificate of testing format. I have been through two PCR tests, one within 96 hours of the departure flight and the other one within 72 hours. Notwithstanding being fully vaccinated since June 4th, saliva-PCR testing will part of my daily routine in Tokyo. Another PCR test will be carried out upon arrival at the airport in Tokyo. Being negative will thankfully be one of the imperative condition to be able to go and shoot events at the Games, but it is also stressful to know your Game experience can stop suddenly or not even start at all.
Tokyo is getting closer
Jul 19th, 1:25pm: Am I really onboard my Frankfurt to Tokyo flight? I have to pinch myself to believe it as so much went through... From the May 7th 2019 exhilaration (day my accreditation has been confirmed) to the emotional stabbing postponment decision on March 24th 2020 to today. In between, a non-stop rollercoaster ride crippled with doubts ensued until the very end. Will the the Games take place or not? Will the drastic cut to the accredited pool mean no foreign media will be allowed? Will the Games be cancelled at some point if there are too many positive covid-19 cases?
I am definitely onboard but not swirled by joy as I know many more hurdles have to be overcome.
But enough of this, for now it’s time to sit back and relax. At least for the next 12 hours.
All Nippon Airways
Kudos to All Nippon Airways (ANA). I was supposed to fly Business Class but due to a schedule change, I ended up flying in Premium Economy, obviously not particularly thrilled about that. I have flown so many different airlines, and all I can say is how satisfied I have been about the courtesy of the crew, cleanliness on board and in-flight entertainment. I am not surprised Skytrax just recognized All Nippon with a 5-Star Airline certification for the quality of its airport, onboard product and staff service.
Dōzo omeshiagarikudasai
Jul 19th, 3:30pm: japanese food and beer… I am smitten. The only edamame, wakame and soba I will be eating within the next 22 days.
Only I don’t know it yet…
Haneda Airport
Jul 20th: so far the situation at the airport is nowhere near the mayhem predicted by pundits or even the horror stories I read few days ago. Maybe this is part luck (looks like we’re the only flight at the moment), maybe this is part because it is Haneda airport and not Narita. I purposedly chose to arrive in Haneda expecting it would be less crowded than Narita airport.
One thing is for sure, all the staff there to welcome us and ensuring compliance with our arrival obligations is working efficiently. The very first impression of the Japanese people is real good. All looks very organized, perfectly clean and the people here are courteous and willing to help.
Saliva-PCR test
Jul 20th, 08:32am: less than 30 minutes after disembarking, I am taking my saliva test. The side picture with the lemon is not there just to make the cabin look pretty but is supposed to make you salivate faster. While it should have taken only 30 seconds to fill it, it took me about 5 minutes. My mouth was dry and one cannot drink at least half an hour prior to be tested, which did not help
Waiting for the test result…
Jul 20th, 09:40am: already an hour passed since test competion and still waiting…am I starting biting my lip for what I said before about things being way quicker than expected? Jet-lag fatigue impedes me to be that cynical, and I take the opportunity to charge my mobile phone as this will have to be always on with bluetooth activated while in Japan. Moreover I will need to show the immigration officer with specific screens from the OCHA application on my phone.
OCHA
Talking of which, proving OCHA is installed on the phone upon disembarking, I have been given this yellow form, which has been controlled at least 10 times at the various checkpoints at the airport.
This is REAL
Jul 20th, 09:50am: I don’t know her name but has there been no pandemic, I would have hug this woman. Seeing this picture you might not realize what she is doing. Basically I am now at the Accreditation Validation and she is converting my Pre-Valid Card into a laminated Olympic Identity and Accreditation Card (OIAC). From now, I am technically granted access to any of the Olympic Games Venues.
And even more so, I am now becoming an OFFICIAL OLYMPIC PHOTOGRAPHER. Yes, this time the emotion is setting in, and I can’t wait to put this gem around my neck.
No sooner said than done
Jul 20th, 09:57am: my laminated OIAC badge fits perfectly around my neck. No time wasted to immortalize the moment I officially became an accredited olympic photographer, with the appropriate background ça va sans dire. As I do this, I have a quick flash, remembering all that went through, all the sweat and passion covering sporting events all around the world and all that lead to that moment. I feel happy and proud, sure seing my face on this selfie nobody can tell 😂
Beware Tokyo 2020, I’m nearly there!
My very first City shot
Jul 20th, 11:00am: Outside of the airport by 10:00am, in the shuttle bus from Haneda to the the Transit Point where a taxi will transfer us individually to our Hotel
Transit point
Jul 20th, 11:15m: this service is running really smoothly. I also note already how hot and humid it is under the sun
Inside the dedicated taxi
Hot and humid outside, the super duper comfy taxi wastes no time and bring me to my accomodation. I will be staying at the Toyoko INN Tozai Line Nishikasai hotel located in the Edogawa district, one of the 23 districts of the Tokyo Metropolis.
My hotel room at the Toyoko INN Tozai Line Nishikasai
Jul 20th, 11:45am: been up nearly 24 hours ago, jet lag fatigue kicking in for sure so I could be tempted to crawl on the bed. However the desire and vital need to go as quickly as possible to the MPC trumps fatigue. This is gonna be my very spartan room for the next 21 nights. Don’t look for the wardrobe, there is not. All I will have are my luggage, the space below the bed and ONE hanger. On another note it cannot be nearer than the metro line and the room is not soundproof. Then again, the room is well-designed, clean, the bathroom is small but real good, and I don’t think I will be able to spend more than 4 hours per day in the room anyway.
Room 613: side-B
This is the desk. I don’t know it yet but it will also by my dinner table for the whole duration of my trip in Tokyo.
This is what the Transport Media bus stop looks
Jul 20th, 1:45pm: the TM bus bound to the Main Transport Mall (MTM) will arrive soon. Once in the MTM I will be a short shuttle ride away from the Main Press Centre (MPC) where I will collect my Photographer’s Vest and hopefully rent some gear at the Canon Professional Service counter. I will also go to the MPC to….eat (I’m starving!) and go to collect the saliva-PCR test kits that I ordered a few weeks ago.
Onboard the TM bus
Jul 20th, 2:05pm: a view from the bus. It basically takes the same route the taxi took before, but in the other direction, as the Main Transport Mall and Main Press Center are opposite the Transit Point
Ariake
The Main Press Centre is round the corner, I can see it. Nearly there!!!!
Live from Tokyo Big Sight
Jul 20th, 2:05pm: I am under the roof of the emblematic Tokyo Big Sight which houses our Main Press Centre during the Olympic Games. Big from outside it is even more impressive from inside. No wonder it is the largest international exhibition center in Japan.
Lunch first
Jul 20th, 2:42pm: I came at the Main Press Centre to collect my photographer’s vest without which no photographer can get access into any photo position at the venues. I am also looking into renting a locker at the MPC but….I’m so starving I thought it would be a great idea to go to eat first. Well…this will be the first and last time I set foot here. Took a burger withfries and a Coke. Nothing fancy, pretty basic, huh? Well unfortunately the food was one of the worst thing I ever ate (no joke!) and quite pricey too. No mas!
PCR sample collection room
Jul 20th, 3:15pm: I went to collect all the test kits I had ordered. For the first 4 days, then every 3 days, then on day 14th after arrival, I will go through saliva PCR test to be deposited either here at the MPC or directly at the competition venues.
Ali Baba’s Cave
Jul 20th, 3:27pm: I still haven’t been to collect my vest as….I passed by the famous Canon Photo Service Centre. I could not NOT stop and went there straight. I had pre-register when I was at the Cannes Film Festival a week ago, so just scanning the bar code of my accreditation badge was enough for the staff to have me in their database, ready for the loan. The picture on the left is the list of all equipment available. This is every photographer’s dream. And I’m no exception to that!
First victim: Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x
Jul 20th, 3:30pm: three minutes after introducing myself to the Canon Professional Service (CPS) reps, I have my hands on the coveted zoom lens: the EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM with 1.4 extender incorporated. Having the extender means the lens can goe as far as 560mm. This is perfect, as the first sport I intend to shoot tomorrow is Football (Soccer). That is… if my request to cover the Women’s Group G game between the almighty USA and Sweden is approved.
Side note: making requests through an Advanced Booking System is one of the tool used to ensure maximum safety during the Games by regulating the number of attendees, which is a first at the Olympics where normally one member of the accredited press could roam freely. It adds uncertainty and stress not knowing in advance whether I will be granted access to the coveted events I had carefully planned to attend months and months ago. But on the other hand, these are Games organized in a particular context and the measures are more than welcome since they permit for the Games to take place.
The Press and Photo Work Room
A total of approximately 700 seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Each seat is equipped with wireless and cabled internet and power sockets. Info Workstation equipped with Info Terminals is placed within these areas. I foresee I won’t spend a lot of time here, in theory.
My very own Photographer’s Vest!!
Jul 20th, 4:25pm: boarding the plane to Tokyo was smelling good. Being handed my laminated accreditation badge was a sweet first taste of what being a photographer at the Olympics will be. Ladies and Gentlemen, let me tell you that putting my photographer’s vest on felt ecstatic.
I immeditaely asked the Helpdesk manager about the day we needed to return it (sorry, I’m a newbie). His answer made me smile from ear to ear :
“No you can keep it, it’s yours”.
The very first event shot at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Projecting myself, anticipating for months and months on what my first photograph taken at the 2020 Olympics would be, I imagined it would be football. Well no! In fact, with my jacket on and lens rented at CPS, I thought about going back to my Hotel but wanted to explore Big Sight a bit before. I happened to go to the 6th floor of the Conference Tower and noticed various conferences had been held there during the day. However one remain to happen, namely the Briefing on the 138th International Olympic Committee session. Bingo!
Interestingely my first sports photograph during these Games is not an action shot but a corporate one. I have been allowed to enter the conference room to attend and cover the Briefing and have photographed TOCOG President Mrs HASHIMOTO Seiko. She is an Olympian that representend her country in four consecutive Winter Olympics from 1984 to 1994 and in three consecutive Summer Olympics from 1988 to 1996. She is only the second female in Olympic history to become president of a game's organising committee after Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, President of the Athens 2004 organising committee. I feel priviledge and honoured taking her portrait is my very first olympic photograph. Symbolic, isn’t it?
Meet the legend: Mr. David Burnett
Jul 20th, 5:30pm: Only at the Olympics can these things happen. Fresh from shooting my very first event of these Games, the Briefing on the 138th International Olympic Committee session, I came back downstaires from the 6th floor of the Conference Tower and bumped into….. Mr. DAVID BURNETT!!!! If you are remotely into Sports Photography and Photographying at the Olympics, then he needs no introduction. For the other, to make an approximate comparison, it would be like meeting Mario Testino at the biggest fashion industry event.
David, on top of being such an inspiration for us, talented and so dedicated, is a truly kind person. I enjoyed speaking to him about these Tokyo Games, sports photography, shooting at the Games, photography gear and…..even Monzambano! This is a town of less than 5,000 people in Italy, not that far from where I live and David knows the place as one of his dear friend leaves there. I have countless books of him at home, and now I am having a chat with him, as a fellow photographer officiating on the Games. Unreal!
I eventually arrived at my hotel room around 9:00pm, meaning I was awake for a consecutive 32 hours (!). Fatigue can wait! All I can say is how blessed I feel living the dream. Roaming inside the Main Press Centre at Tokyo Big Sight, renting whatever lens I need at the Canon Professional Service centre, and even speaking to the legend Dave Burnett himself! Just WOW!
While so many doubts and potential difficulties remain to be overcome (will I manage to remain covid free? will I get accredited to the events I had carefully planned to cover? will I take great shots and be published? will I attend the very coveted and symbolic Opening Ceremony?) this already feels real real good.
A dream come true. A dream or a goal? This should call up for another lengthy blog post. It maybe be both on this occasion. From being a child I dreamt about the Olympics and what they stand for. I even attended the 2004 Athens Olympics as a spectator and loved every single second of it. As a Sports Photographer, shooting at the Olympics definitely is has been on the very top of Goals to achieve though. It has been requiring sweat, perseverance and sacrifices. Setting up so many intermediate goals to be in a position to pretend reaching this One. And this is now getting more and more tangible as I received confirmation from the Advanced Booking System so I will be able to shoot the Football Game tomorrow. Game on!