These will be displayed at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne and at other museums around the world.

Organisers say they "will represent the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games for generations to come."

They were selected from the 20 official posters created as part of the artistic programme for the Games.

The "Harmonised Chequered Emblem Study for Tokyo Olympic Games" was the work of Asao Tokolo, also the designer behind the Olympic podium unveiled earlier this month.

"The poster is like a baton that is passed on to the future generation," said Tokolo. 

"As a symbol of the Tokyo 2020 Games that will mark an important milestone in Olympic history, I hope that the poster will be passed on and cherished for many years to come.

"I decided to return to the basics and use a compass and a ruler to draw by hand the chequered ‘ichimatsu moyo’ pattern of the Tokyo 2020 emblem, which represents ‘diversity and inclusiveness.’"

The poster has been created in indigo blue which is also the predominant colour used for the medal podium.

Tokolo explained why he had used the colour scheme.

"I take great pride in the Japanese indigo colour, which was considered ‘the colour for victory’ by warlords during the Sengoku Period (late 1500s to late 1600s)."

It was also a colour widely used by the common people of Japan from the Edo Period at the beginning of the 17th to the mid 19th century.

For Olympic Foundation for Culture and Heritage Director Angelita Teo: "The chosen poster articulates themes of embracing diversity and solidarity - core messages which the Olympic Games have always valued as we work towards creating a world where people are intrinsically linked with one another. 

"This clearly symbolises the Tokyo 2020 Games concept of ‘Unity in Diversity’.”

The poster for the Paralympics, appropriately titled "Paralympian" is the work of artists Q Asaba, Kent Iitaka and Rei Ishii, known collectively as Goo Choki Par, a design group based in Tokyo.

"We expressed the strong determination of the Para athletes who continue to challenge with optimism," they said.

International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons admitted: "It was difficult to choose a poster which best represents the Games as there were many great posters."

He hailed the work, the first Paralympic poster singled out in this way, because it "represents the diversity and joy we have at the Paralympics, providing a spectacular platform to change the world through sport."

All the posters will be on display at the Japan Olympic Museum from today until September 5 and a range of merchandise featuring the two "iconic" posters is to go on sale shortly.

Poster art has been an integral part of the Olympic "look" since the early years of the Modern Games.

In 1964, there were only four posters for the Tokyo Games but all were widely acclaimed and won the Milan Prize for Poster Design. 

They featured memorable photographs of athletes and a swimmer by Osamu Hayasaki and were designed by Yusaka Kamekura.