The Tokyo Paralympic flame was created at a ceremony at the Akasaka Palace state guesthouse in the Japanese capital Friday as flames lit across the country were united.

Flames ignited across the country’s 47 prefectures and Stoke Mandeville in Britain, the spiritual birthplace of the Paralympic movement, were merged into one in a cauldron by three people including Japanese actress Satomi Ishihara.

“Tokyo is the world’s first city to host a second Summer Paralympics,” Seiko Hashimoto, president of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics organizing committee, said in a speech.

The Paralympics “will provide an opportunity to realize diversity and harmony,” Hashimoto said.

The ceremony was also attended by Japanese Prime Minister SUGA Yoshihide, Tokyo Governor KOIKE Yuriko and International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons.

The torch relay was scheduled to take place on public roads in Tokyo and the prefectures of Shizuoka, Chiba and Saitama, where Paralympic competitions take place.

But the relay has mostly been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead flame lighting ceremonies will take place across Tokyo before the Paralympics kick off on Tuesday.

JIJI Press