Yoshinori Sakai Dies at 69 - lit Olympic Torch 1964, born in Hiroshima 8/6/45
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoshinori_Sakai
Yoshinori Sakai (坂井 義則 Sakai Yoshinori?, born in Miyoshi,
Hiroshima, Japan, August 6, 1945 September 10, 2014) was the Olympic flame torchbearer
who lit the cauldron at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Sakai was born on the day of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
He was chosen for the role to symbolize Japan's postwar reconstruction and peace. At the time he was a member of Waseda University's running club.
The nineteen-year-old was coached in the ceremonial duty by Teruji Kogake, a triple jump world record-holder turned coach.
After the Olympic games, he won a gold medal in 1600 m relay and a silver in 400 m at 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok. He joined Fuji Television in 1968 as a journalist and worked mainly in the fields of news and sports. He never actually competed in the Olympics.
Born in Hiroshima, 8/6/45. Died today. Just wow...