The 1994 Asian Games (1994年アジア競技大会), also known as the XII Asiad and the 12th Asian Games (第12回アジア競技大会) or simply Hiroshima 1994 (広島1994), were held from October 2 to 16, 1994, in Hiroshima, Japan. It was the first Asian Games in history to be hosted in a non-capital city. The main theme of this edition was to promote peace and harmony among Asian nations. This concept was used due to the historical fact that the city was the site of the first atomic bomb attack 49 years earlier. Due to the 1991 Gulf War, Iraq was suspended from the games. The games debuted the five Asian former republics of the Soviet Union: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.[1][2]
There were a total number of 6,828 athletes and officials involved, from 42 countries, with a total number of 34 sports. Debut sports at this edition of the Asiad were baseball, karate and modern pentathlon.[1]
Bidding process
In 1983, two cities in Asia demonstrated interest to host the 1990 Asian Games, one was Beijing in the People's Republic of China and the other was Hiroshima in Japan. The two interest parties presented their projects before an Olympic Council of Asia committee, during a meeting of the same, during the following year in Seoul, that also served as a previous meeting to evaluate the preparations of the city for the next Asian Games and also for the 1988 Summer Olympics. Beijing eventually won the right to host the 1990 edition. However, the Japanese authorities were unaware of the Chinese proposal until this date and were surprised by the option for the capital of China. Nevertheless, the Japanese proposal was extremely praised to the point that the OCA invited the city to host the following Games in 1994.[3]
The emblem of the games is an abstract image of a dove, symbol of peace, which resembles the letter 'H' initial as in the host city name Hiroshima, reflecting Hiroshima's desire for peace. The OCA emblem is the symbol of Asian Games as a whole which resembles athlete in motion.[4]
Mascot
Official mascots
The official mascot of the XII Asiad is a pair of white doves. Poppo and Cuccu, male and female respectively, represent peace and harmony - the main theme of this edition of the Asian Games.[2] They were designed by well-known manga artist and character designer Susumu Matsushita.
The Chinese had 11 athletes test positive for banned drugs and anabolic steroids at the 1994 Asian Games.[5] Less than a month before the Asian Games, a scandal at the 1994 World Aquatics Championships in Rome, when the Chinese had won 12 of the 16 women's swimming titles, with two of those nine world champions among those who tested positive at the Asian games.[6][7][8][9][10]
↑Wolff, Alexandra (October 16, 1995). "The China Syndrome". sportsillustrated.com (Sports Illustrated). Archived from the original on August 19, 2000. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
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