It has been suggested that they will fly above the stadium trailing coloured smoke and describing the five Olympic rings in the sky, according to a report by Kyodo News, although no precise details of their role has yet been revealed.

The squadron, part of Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force, had welcomed the arrival of the Olympic Flame when it touched down at their home air base at Matsushima in March 2020, in the days before the postponement of the Games to 2021 had been confirmed.

Their participation will provide an echo of Tokyo’s 1964 Olympic Opening Ceremony.

After the Flame had been lit and the Oath had been taken, a ceremonial release of pigeons was followed by a display in which five jets described the rings in a clear blue sky to bring the ceremony to a close.

It was the beginning of a close Olympic association for Blue Impulse.

At the 1998 Winter Games, they provided a grand finale to the opening in Nagano.

Five jets flew over the stadium trailing the Olympic colours as the final notes faded after a memorable performance of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, performed by choirs across the world led by renowned conductor Seiji Osawa.

Last May, the team flew in to salute Japanese health workers, but it had been grounded for almost a year as a result of the pandemic.

Their first public performance of 2021 came at April’s Tulip Festival at Tonami in Toyama Prefecture.

Aerobatic displays have often been part of Olympic festivities. The Royal Canadian Air Force "Snowbirds" flew over the stadium at the opening of the 1988 Winter Games in Calgary and a perfectly timed salute by the United States Air Force "Thunderbirds" followed the performance of the Star Spangled Banner at the 1996 Centennial Olympics in Atlanta.

The Royal Air Force “Red Arrows” flew over London’s stadium as the 2012 ceremony was about to begin.