[Special Feature: Tokyo 2020 and Keio University] Takaki Kato: Experiencing the Tokyo Games as a Referee

The Tokyo 2020 Games, held during the COVID-19 pandemic, were very different from the glamorous image of the Olympics I had always imagined. However, now that my first Olympics are over, I see this experience not as a goal, but rather as a start toward improving the quality of my future activities.

Just as many athletes stake their lives on aiming for the Olympics, it is not easy for us referees to stand on an Olympic court. There are a total of 30 referees for 5-on-5 basketball at the Olympics, and the best members are selected at the time of the tournament, taking into account the performance of each referee who has officiated at various International Basketball Federation (FIBA) tournaments since the previous Games. Being selected as one of only 30 Olympic referees in the world once every four years is extremely precious in itself, but the fact that this opportunity occurred at a tournament held in my own country was a miraculous probability and a source of supreme joy for me.

On the other hand, due to the influence of the new coronavirus, I had complex emotions internally about participating in this tournament, where the holding of the event was being fiercely debated. As the number of infected people increased and I saw more negative media coverage regarding the event, I sometimes felt a sense of guilt about officiating the Olympics, which should have been a happy occasion for me. Also, because opinions that the event should be canceled were heard until the very last minute, I sometimes became suspicious of whether it would actually be held.

However, regardless of whether these emotions existed or not, what I could do and what I had to do was to deliver the best performance I was capable of when the Olympics were safely held and I actually officiated matches, and to do my absolute best in preparation for that.

One month before the Olympics, I officiated at the Olympic Qualifying Tournament held in Croatia. I was able to identify areas for improvement based on the evaluation of the matches I officiated there and devise countermeasures by analyzing a lot of footage after returning to Japan. Also, after returning home, there was a two-week period of self-quarantine, and there were corresponding difficulties in preparation. However, by not using the environment or my emotions as excuses and facing my own areas for improvement head-on, I was able to approach the matches from the first game of the actual Olympics with a positive mindset.

In both the final qualifiers in Croatia and the Olympic main tournament, there were many moments where I felt the terrifying intensity of each country representing their nation and aiming for an Olympic medal. Furthermore, especially for this tournament, many players withdrew from their national teams due to the influence of the new coronavirus, and every country was more or less forced to struggle to assemble their best members.

Since a single whistle from us referees had the potential to be a critical decision that could sway the outcome of the game, we were required to very carefully examine whether to blow the whistle or not for every single play. Being able to pursue my own refereeing while feeling this atmosphere firsthand from the final qualifiers was a great asset, not only for the Olympic main tournament but also for my future career as a referee.

I officiated five matches in my first Olympics, and in every match, I was able to deliver the best performance I was capable of at the time. As a result, I was able to officiate the women's bronze medal match.

On the other hand, regardless of whether we officiated the Olympics or not, we referees must constantly repeat improvements to provide better matches. The moment we think we are perfect, our growth stops, and we become unable to deliver a better performance than that. However, that means we can continuously improve and grow until the day we eventually retire. In other words, even if I officiated a home-country Olympics at a miraculous probability, it is not the goal for me.

Having officiated the Olympics, the world's greatest sports festival, what I was made to think about was nothing special. Rather, it was the importance of the steady, repetitive effort of sincerely facing the improvements identified as a result of doing my best—just as in any other match—and providing a better game at the next opportunity. And in the sense that I was able to reconfirm these things, officiating the Olympics became a new start for me.

I hope to officiate at future World Cups and Olympics as a result of my future efforts, but my future approach will not change based on whether or not I am able to officiate these tournaments. Without becoming arrogant because I officiated the Olympics this time, I want to continue to face areas for improvement in every single game and every single play every day to provide better matches and continue to grow.