NIPPONIA

NIPPONIA No.18 September 15, 2001
Special Feature*

The International Media Center

With each World Cup, worldwide interest and excitement is greater than the time before. Matches during the last Cup in France had a worldwide TV audience totaling 33 billion.

This indicates a tremendous demand for information on the matches, a demand that will be met at two International Media Centers (IMC) during the 2002 Cup, one in Seoul in the Republic of Korea, and one in Yokohama. Japan's IMC will be located in the Exhibition Hall at Pacifico Yokohama, in the Minato Mirai 21 District.

The IMC will house the Main Press Center (the MPC, the center of operations for reporters and camera crews), and the International Broadcasting Center (the IBC, a telecommunications hub for editing sound and images and transmitting them around the world). The IMC will open its doors to media personnel about three months before the World Cup.

About 10,000 media people are expected to cover the final game, and preparations are underway to help make their work easier.

The International Stadium Yokohama seats 72,370 people, making it Japan's largest stadium. Fans sitting in the front row are on the same level as the players.
http://www.city.yokohama.jp/me/w-cup/

Getting Ready for the Big Day

In February 2001, Yokohama's municipal government sent out a call for volunteer interpreters and guides to lend a hand for the World Cup. About 6,800 residents stepped forward seeking the 500 positions. Services will be available in English and a number of other foreign languages, including Arabic, French, Indonesian, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish.

"The number of volunteers exceeded all expectations," says Uotani Kenji, the head of the Convention Promotion Office of the Yokohama Planning Bureau, which is preparing for the events. "That shows how keen people are to get involved in the World Cup."

The city also opened a display booth at Plaza de 2002 Yokohama in the Minato Mirai 21 District, to provide information on the World Cup. Other municipal projects include countdown ceremonies in front of Yokohama Station and elsewhere, to mark each time 100 days slip by--events have already been held to mark 600, 500 and 400 days to the big event. Each celebration brings out more people, and the countdowns will of course continue with events marking 300, 200 and 100 days before the Cup. On another front, a photo exhibit depicting former World Cups is making the rounds of Yokohama's 18 wards.

Preparations continue in Yokohama as the pressure builds toward the fever of excitement expected on the big day in 2002.

Events are being held in different parts of Yokohama as the countdown continues. These three photos show events marking 600 days(Top) ,before the World Cup 500 days before (middle), and 400 days before (bottom)

Some of the events were a youth tournament for futsal (a scaled-down version of soccer), quizzes, and a talk show with Philippe Troussier, the coach of Japan's national team.

"Countdown balls" on a panel mounted on the Sotetsu Joinus Department Store at the west exit of Yokohama Station. The panel holds soccer balls inscribed with the number of days to the World Cup. At the end of each day, the ball with the highest number is removed to show there is one less day, and then given to someone participating in events in the square below.

NIPPONIA