The Plaza is one of the main facilities in the Athletes' Village, located in the Harumi waterfront district of Tokyo, as well as the venue for the team welcome ceremonies of all the National Olympic Committees.

Other services in the Plaza, such as the general store, café and media centre, are provided to support the athletes' stay during this year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games.

About 40,000 pieces of timber have been used to build the structure, which cost JPY¥2.4 billion (£16.9 million/$22 million/€20 million).

They were donated by 63 municipalities across host country Japan in a sustainability initiative known as Operation BATON (Building Athletes' Village with Timber Of the Nation).

Timbers such as larch, Japanese cedar and Japanese cypress have been donated.

Each piece is marked with the name of the village, town, city or prefecture that provided it.

After Tokyo 2020, the Plaza will be dismantled and the timber will be returned to the municipalities that donated it for re-use in local facilities that will help to commemorate Tokyo 2020, for example, public benches or parts of school buildings.

"The structure draws on the Japanese tradition of building with wood," a Tokyo 2020 spokesperson was reported as saying by The Japan Times.

Construction work is due to continue until some time in April, although organisers said the exterior and main structure are complete.

Representatives of the municipalities participating in Operation BATON were invited to a ceremony today.

"Even though construction is nearly complete, much of this structure will be left bare and exposed," Tokyo 2020 President Yoshirō Mori was reported as saying by The Japan Times during the ceremony.

"We want you to be able to see how and where the wood you donated is being used.

"I believe the end result was worth the effort."

Athletes and support staff from more than 200 countries will gather in the Athletes' Village, located in the Harumi waterfront district of Tokyo, during this summer's Games.

The Plaza will be the central hub of the Village in both location and function.

It will host the Village's Opening Ceremony, as well as visiting dignitaries and athlete media opportunities.

Village Mayor Saburō Kawabuchi, founder and honorary chairman of the Japan Professional Football League, is a former professional footballer who represented Japan at the Tokyo 1964 Olympics.

Village director Haruki Uemura is a gold medallist in judo from the Montreal 1976 Olympics.

Both Kawabuchi and Uemura will have offices in the Plaza, as will the deputy mayors.