--- description: The 2020 Tokyo Olympic logo was officially withdrawn on Tuesday after allegations of plagiarism against the designer, Kenjiro Sano. title: 2020 Tokyo Olympic Logo Scrapped After Plagiarism Allegation image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt380f85da8f8eb513/698861f1428a9e3660cceea3/japan-olympics-tokyo-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Logo Has Been Withdrawn After Plagiarism Accusations by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 2, 2015 3:07 AM CUT  The poster with a logo of Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 is removed from the wall by a worker during an event staged for photographers at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building in Tokyo Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015 The poster with a logo of Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 is removed from the wall by a worker during an event staged for photographers at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building in Tokyo Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015Eugene Hoshiko—AP by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 2, 2015 3:07 AM CUT The 2020 Tokyo Olympic logo was meant to represent unity. Instead, it was officially withdrawn on Tuesday after allegations of plagiarism against the designer, Kenjiro Sano. Sano maintains his design came from original work and that he only pulled the logo because it did not have public support, the _Japan_ _Times_ [reports](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/09/02/national/sano-stands-olympics-logo-denies-plagiarism-retracts-design-protect-family-staff/#.VeZUetOqpBd "undefined"). It has also been alleged that Sano used work from other artists without permission during his Olympic logo presentations. “I swear my design did not involve copies or plagiarism,” Sano, 43, said in a statement published on his website, in a translation provided by the newspaper. “Any attempt of suspected copying or plagiarism should never be permitted.” “I made the decision (to retract the logo) after judging that it is difficult to let this situation continue, to protect my family and staff from persistent attacks and bashing over the ruckus,” Sano said . “I feel the situation has become unbearable as a human being.” He also said the privacy of his family was infringed after their pictures appeared online. The retracted logo, which features a bold letter ‘T’ and a red circle, bares striking similarity to graphic designer Olivier Debie’s emblem for the Théâtre de Liège in Belgium. Since pulling the artwork, Sano has apologized to some parties, but not for his work on the logo. He will not receive the ¥1 million ($8,320) prize for winning the design competition, the _Times_ says. \[[_The Japan Times_](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/09/02/national/sano-stands-olympics-logo-denies-plagiarism-retracts-design-protect-family-staff/#.VeZUetOqpBd "undefined")\] ### See Photos of Love and Courtship in 1950s Japan  A young couple on a date in a cafe in Tokyo. John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A Shibui dance function in Tokyo where young people would go to meet other young people in hopes of finding a partner. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  A Shibui dance function in Tokyo where young people would go to meet other young people in hopes of finding a partner. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  A young couple walking around in the Ginza district of Tokyo. 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Akiksuke Tsutsui, left, bids his girlfriend, Chiyoko Inami, farewell as her train departs. March 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Akiksuke Tsutsui, left, and his girlfriend Chiyoko Inami, right, walking around in the Ginza district during their lunch hour. March 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Nohito Mukai, left, and his girlfriend, Hiroko Inayaki, go roller skating on a date in Tokyo. March 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Hiroko Inayaki, left, goes for a drive with her boyfriend, Nohito Mukai. March 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Takahide Inayama (Age 20), left, and his girlfriend, Mitusyo Ogama (Age 20), both are university students. Seen here picking out apples on a date near their university. 1959 JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Chiyoko Inami, left, and her boyfriend, Akiksuke Tsutsui, playing a game on a train headed to Kyoto to meet Tsutsui's family. March, 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  A young couple out on a date in Tokyo. 1959 JOHN DOMINISÑTHE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Young couple visiting a bridge near the Imperial Palace. 1959 JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  A young couple takes a "selfie" on a self-timer on their camera. 1959 JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  Chiyoko Inami, left, and her boyfriend, Akiksuke Tsutsui, right, sharing an intimate moment on a date. March, 1959. JOHN DOMINIS—THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES  A young couple making out on a date in a park in Tokyo. 1959. JOHN DOMINISÑTHE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4019664/tokyo-olympic-2020-plagiarism-design-logo/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4019664/tokyo-olympic-2020-plagiarism-design-logo/"},"headline":"The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Logo Has Been Withdrawn After Plagiarism Accusations","datePublished":"2015-09-02T03:07:39.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:01:49.115Z","description":"Designer Kenjiro Sano denies copying the work of others","url":"https://time.com/4019664/tokyo-olympic-2020-plagiarism-design-logo/","keywords":["Tokyo","Plagiarism","Logo","Design","Summer Olympics","2020","2020 Tokyo Olympics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt380f85da8f8eb513/698861f1428a9e3660cceea3/japan-olympics-tokyo-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mark Rivett-Carnac","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/mark-rivett-carnac/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt380f85da8f8eb513/698861f1428a9e3660cceea3/japan-olympics-tokyo-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Japan Olympics Tokyo 2020 Logo","caption":"Japan Olympics Tokyo 2020 Logo","creditText":"Eugene Hoshiko—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4019664/tokyo-olympic-2020-plagiarism-design-logo/","name":"The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Logo Has Been Withdrawn After Plagiarism Accusations"}}]}] ```