Hiroshima Hosts Torch Relay Ceremony for Asian Games

In the soft evening light over Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, sport and history met at the same flame.

On Thursday, the city that still stands as a global symbol of peace hosted a flame-lighting ceremony for the torch relay of the upcoming Asian Games, to be staged mainly in Aichi Prefecture from Sept. 19 to Oct. 4.

Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui stepped forward to the Flame of Peace, the eternal fire dedicated to the victims of the Aug. 6, 1945 U.S. atomic bombing. From that flame, he lit a torch, then turned to pass its power on. A lighting rod held by Hajime Moriyasu, head coach of the Japanese men's national soccer team, caught the fire, before the flame was carefully transferred into a golden lantern.

Around them, officials and guests looked on, aware of the symbolism. Moriyasu’s presence carried its own weight. He began his corporate and professional playing career in Hiroshima, and now leads the national team on the international stage.

“I think that sports have the power of binding different values and cultures together. I want athletes (who are set to participate in the Asian Games) to compete with all their strength while wishing for peace,” Moriyasu said, tying the competitive spirit of the Games directly to the city’s message.

The ceremony in Hiroshima followed a similar flame-lighting event held Tuesday in Tokyo, host of the 1958 Asian Games. Another flame has been lit in Nagoya, the capital of Aichi Prefecture and the main stage for this year’s quadrennial event.

The journey of the fire is carefully choreographed. On Saturday, the three flames from Tokyo, Hiroshima and Nagoya will be brought together at Nagoya Castle, fused into a single official Asian Games flame. From there, the torch relay will begin across Aichi Prefecture that same day.

For Hiroshima, which hosted the Asian Games in 1994, the sight of another Games flame born from the Flame of Peace adds a new chapter to a familiar story: elite sport carrying a message that stretches far beyond the field.