Olympic flowers and the 2011 Tsunami

When the Tokyo Olympic medal winners receive their medals (which are made from recycled electronics remember) they only contain a small percentage of the metal they take their name from (around 1.5% gold in the gold medal).

They also receive a small bouquet of flowers and a small Olympic mascot - this year called Miraitowa

There is a link between this bouquet and the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear disaster.

The BBC article explains the origins of the flowers.

There's a particularly poignant story related to the sunflowers which are prominent in the bouquet.

Bright yellow sunflowers, which dominate the bouquets, were grown in Miyagi, having been planted by parents whose children died in the disaster. The parents chose a hillside where their children had sought refuge from the effects of the tsunami.

Image copyright: BBC News - see link above