No Spectators at Tokyo Olympics Due to Japan's COVID-19 Emergency

Most events at the delayed 2020 Olympics will take place in Tokyo, but a few events will be held outside the city.

Olympic countdown: Five-member athlete army from TN to Tokyo.

Image: IANS

The Tokyo Olympic Games, staring on 23 July, will be played without spectators at venues, Tokyo Olympics Minister Tamayo Marukawa announced on Thursday.

Tokyo will be placed under the fourth state of emergency on 12 July, and it will last until 22 August, covering the duration of the Olympics (July 23-August 8).

We reached an agreement on no spectators at venues in Tokyo," Tamayo Marukawa said after talks involving local and national government officials, organisers and Olympic and Paralympic chiefs.

"It is regrettable that we are delivering the Games in a very limited format, facing the spread of coronavirus infections," Tokyo 2020 president Seiko Hashimoto said.

"I am sorry to those who purchased tickets and everyone in local areas."

No fans from abroad were allowed as they had been banned months ago, but the new measures announced by Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga will clear venues around Tokyo of any fans at all.

The big announcement by the Japan government got the five stakeholders into a huddle and they came out with a joint statement supporting the move.

"The GoJ today decided to announce a state of emergency in Tokyo. The state of emergency in Tokyo is being implemented as a measure aimed at suppressing the flow of people in order to prevent the spread of infection now, because the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases remains high and the number of people infected with variant COVID-19 strains in Tokyo is increasing," the joint statement said.

"In response to the state of emergency, stricter measures with regard to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 have also been decided by the three Japanese parties. No spectators will be allowed into any venues in Tokyo during the Olympic Games. Under this policy, in areas where emergency measures are not in force, local government authorities will meet and decide specific measures in consultation with the local governors based on the situation in each area," the IOC statement said.

Most events at the delayed 2020 Olympics will take place in Tokyo, but a few events will be held outside the Japanese capital.

The new emergency measures that have been announced come hours after the arrival of IOC President Thomas Bach, who landed in Tokyo on Thursday.

Only a couple of weeks ago, organizers and the IOC were allowing venues to be filled to 50% of capacity but crowds not to exceed 10,000.

The state of emergency however has put a spanner in the works, which was expected if infections got worse.

It was decided on Thursday that a call on allowing spectators at the Paralympic Games will be taken after the Olympic Games.