While the 2020 Tokyo Olympics 開会式 (kaikaishiki, opening ceremony) will be remembered for a notable lack of spectators, the event reminded us that the 選手 (senshu, athletes) are at the real stars of the show.
As with previous Olympics, a major part of the media coverage is the daily updates of 国別メダル獲得数 (kunibetsu medaru kakutoku-sū, number of medals won by country). This is where you’ll find out which country is taking the 金 (kin, gold), 銀 (gin, silver) and 銅 (dō, bronze) メダル (medaru, medals).
While the verb 優勝する (yūshō suru, to win the top spot) tends to be used when someone has won a tournament — 白鵬が今年の大相撲七月場所で優勝した (Hakuho ga kotoshi no Ōzumo Shichi-gatsu Basho de yūshō shita, Hakuho won this year’s July Grand Sumo Tournament) — but the verb 獲得する (kakutoku suru, to acquire) is more often used when an athlete or national team wins an Olympic medal. In their verb forms, the kanji used for kaku and toku, 獲る and 得る, are both read “eru,” meaning to obtain or get.
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