Fact Check: Tokyo Olympics firework display at Mt. Fuji is simulation
By Newsmeter Network Published on 22 Aug 2020 8:00 AM GMT
Hyderabad: Japan was set to host Olympics 2020 this year but due to the pandemic, it has been postponed. Now, a video reportedly showing a firework display that was originally meant for the Tokyo Olympics is being widely circulated on social media. The fireworks were displayed at Japan's Mount Fuji, it claims.
A tweet by Gaurav Dalmia read, "Fireworks were prepared for the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Tokyo this year. The Olympics have been postponed till 2021 but these fireworks cannot be stored. So the display happened recently, with Mt Fuji as the backdrop. Enjoy! https://t.co/SUt84rkiWk."
Archived claim can be found here.
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Fact check :
The International Olympic Committee has postponed the Olympics until July 2021. However, according to reports, the fireworks were displayed on 24 July 2020 to mark the day the Olympics were supposed to begin. During the event organized by the Junior Chamber International Japan, fireworks were set off at 117 locations in the country's 47 prefectures.
NewsMeter performed a reverse image search using a few key-frames from the video and found that the same video was posted on a YouTube channel on 1 December 2015. The video was titled "FWsim Mount Fuji Synchronized Fireworks Show2". It also contained a description and when translated it said the video was based on a large-scale fireworks display held in winter at Lake Kawaguchi in cooperation with the Lake Kawaguchi Fisheries Cooperative to commemorate the registration of Mt. Fuji as a world cultural heritage site.
When we searched using the keyword "FWsim", we found a firework simulator website FWSIM. According to the website, one can create fireworks with music, build firework effects, and export the video in a 4k resolution. This viral video is a simulator created by a firework simulator website to commemorate the selection of Mt. Fuji as a world cultural heritage. The video has been online for more than five years.
Therefore, the claim that fireworks kept for the inauguration of Olympics 2020 was displayed at Mt. Fuji is FALSE.
