At the Rio Olympics closing ceremony, the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared as which character?

Japan's prime minister Shinzo Abe made an appearance during the Closing Ceremony of the Rio Olympics, disguised as Super Mario. As the Closing Ceremony drew to a close, the governor of Tokyo formally accepted the Olympic flag, marking the end of the 2016 games. As per tradition, the next hosts were afforded a short time to showcase their country and give a teaser trailer of their plans for the next Games.

It's a fast paced, futuristic trailer featuring athletes in action against a Tokyo backdrop and scenes from manga cartoons Capitan Tsubasa and Doraemon and video game Pac Man. Cut to Mr Abe travelling by car and announcing that he won't make it in time to Rio. Appears Super Mario, from the famous Nintendo game, running around Tokyo and jumping into a green pipe.

An animation shows drilling through the earth all the way to the Maracana stadium where a Super Mario green pipe appears. A figure dressed as plumber Mario himself loses the disguise to reveal none other than the prime minister of Japan holding a bright red ball in his hands. The short cameo, which received a positive reaction on Twitter, came toward the end of the Closing Ceremony.