100 Yen - Reiwa Cycling

Issued as part of Japan's 2020 Tokyo Olympics commemorative circulation program, this piece belongs to a series of 100-yen coins released through normal banking channels rather than as collector sets — an unusual decision that put Olympic imagery into everyday pockets at face value. The cycling design corresponds to the road and track events held at the Izu Velodrome and along the Fuji Speedway course, both chosen partly to showcase the region's dramatic topography.

The Tokyo Games themselves were delayed a full year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning coins dated 2020 were circulating well before the events they commemorated actually took place.