The 2016 Rio Olympics’ closing ceremony became a massive love letter to Japanese pop culture, with Mario as the star.
As per tradition, the host country of the next Olympics—in this case, Tokyo—makes an appearance during the current games’ closing ceremony.
Donning a Mario cap, the prime minister promptly transformed into Mario himself before leaping into a Warp Pipe, traversing half the world in an instant, and reappearing in real life in Rio, bedecked in Mario cosplay.