This Dec. 15, 2021 photo shows the Tokyo Olympic emblem being removed from the exterior wall of the Tokyo metropolitan government building. (Kyodo)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Tokyo metropolitan government on Wednesday started removing Olympic and Paralympic emblems from its facilities, several months after the games were held in the capital amid the coronavirus pandemic following a one-year postponement.

       Large wall stickers and other decorations featuring the emblems and games' mascots will be taken down, as Tokyo's contract with the International Olympic Committee states that the host city can only use such materials until the end of the year, officials said.

       On Wednesday, work began to remove large emblems from the Tokyo assembly building's exterior wall, as well as stickers featuring the mascots from a square in front of the metropolitan government building where the Olympic torch relay concluded on July 23.

       The emblems, some as large as 8.5 meters horizontally and vertically, have been on display since May 2016, about a month after the Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee selected them as the official logos.

       The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics were postponed from the summer of 2020 due to the pandemic. Both games involved athletes from around the world, but were held mostly without spectators to prevent the spread of the virus.

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