The flame was officially passed from Athens, Greece to a representative of Japan on Thursday -- who took the torch to a waiting jet, which flew to the Matsushima Air Base in Miyagi, Japan.

When the plane touched down on Friday, a group of important people were waiting on the tarmac to greet it -- including Japanese Olympic gold medallists Saori Yoshida and Tadahiro Nomura. Tokyo 2020 president Yoshiro Mori was also on hand.

But, the most shocking part ... a large group of fans and reporters gathered at the airport to witness the moment. The people were smothering each other despite massive calls for social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.

So far, Japan has nearly 1,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 -- but insists the 2020 Games will go on as planned.