Are the Tokyo Olympics actually going to happen?
Tokyo is determined to hold the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics this year, after the pandemic forced the city to postpone the Games last year, rescheduling them for July 23 through Aug. 8, 2021. At the World Economic Forum in January, Japan Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide told delegates that the postponed Summer Games will serve as “proof of mankind’s victory over the virus.” Thing is, that triumph hasn’t happened yet. Vaccine rollouts began in Japan on Feb. 17, with the government dispensing 40,000 Pfizer vaccines to frontline health workers. But experts cited by the Associated Press say Japan won’t reach herd immunity from vaccines before the Olympics start in July. Meanwhile, many of the world’s most populous countries are still struggling to get daily case numbers under control, and vaccines aren’t expected to be widespread globally for at least another year. Even in Japan, several prefectures are under a state of emergency to combat a sudden wave of COVID-19.
On Feb. 2, Yoshihide extended the state of emergency to March 7, as hospitals struggled to cope even as cases declined. With the virus still far from contained, Japan’s citizens have lost their Olympic spirit. According to a poll by Kyodo News, 80% of respondents want to see the 2020—now 2021—Olympics canceled or rescheduled again. But Suga and the former head of Tokyo’s Olympic Committee, Yoshiro Mori (who stepped down in February following the outcry over his sexist comments about women talking too much) vowed to press on.“No matter what the situation will be with the coronavirus, we will hold the Games,” Mori told lawmakers at a Feb. 2 meeting of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Mori said the government should move on from discussing whether to hold the Games and instead discuss how to hold the Games. Mori’s message echoed the sentiment expressed by International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach during a news conference in January. He told reporters, “We are not speculating whether the Games will take place. We are working on how the Games will take place.”
On Feb. 3, the Tokyo Olympic Committee answered at least part of the “how” question when it issued a “playbook” to participating sports federation officials, outlining the pandemic restrictions that will be in place during the Games. According to the rules, officials will be required to start monitoring their health and temperature two weeks before flying to Tokyo. The delegates will also need to show a negative COVID-19 test before boarding flights to Japan and, once they arrive, officials will be tested again and then shuttled to their accommodation but won’t have to quarantine. While in Tokyo, officials must keep at least one meter apart from other people but are required to stay at least two meters away from athletes, who have their own “playbook” of rules to follow.
In December, the International Olympic Committee confirmed that athletes won’t be allowed to enter the Olympic Village more than five days before their first event and have to leave again within two days of their final competition. Ordinarily, athletes can spend the entire duration of the Games at the Village beyond their final event and up to the closing ceremony. Athletes are usually welcome to arrive early too: At the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, some competitors arrived two weeks before the Games started. Athletes usually arrive in a host country well ahead of time so that they can acclimatize before competing. For the Tokyo Olympics, it’s possible athletes will be able to travel to Japan more than five days before their meets; they just won’t be able to access the Olympic Village far in advance.
Much like Olympic officials, athletes will have to begin monitoring their health two weeks before arriving at the Olympic Village. But according to the Tokyo 2020 playbook for athletes, competitors at the Summer Games won’t be required to quarantine on arrival nor do they need to have been vaccinated to attend. Athletes have to present a negative COVID-19 test, taken up to 72 hours before their flight to Japan. Once in Japan, athletes are under broadly the same restrictions as Olympic officials. That includes sticking to a prepared schedule for the first 14 days, recording all close contact with others, remaining on-site, and wearing masks except when competing or training. Physical contact, like hugging, high fives, and handshakes, is discouraged.
0 Comment