Fans will be banned from most Olympic events and Tokyo will be under a virus state of emergency throughout the pandemic-postponed Games, Japanese officials announced yesterday, just two weeks before the opening ceremony.
The decision, described by Tokyo’s governor as “heartbreaking,” means the Games will be the first to take place largely behind closed doors and is another blow for organisers as they try to build momentum for the event.
When the Games were postponed last year as the scale of the pandemic became clear, there was talk that they would be staged as proof the world had overcome the virus. But that triumphant tone has given way to the harsh reality of new infection surges and more contagious variants, including the Delta strain that has spooked officials in Japan. The country has seen a comparatively small virus outbreak and avoided tough lockdowns, but it also moved slowly to start vaccinations, and only about 15% of its population is fully vaccinated so far. With infections rising in the capital, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga yesterday announced Tokyo would be under a virus emergency from July 12 until August 22.
The measure is significantly looser than lockdowns seen elsewhere, largely limiting alcohol sales, shortening opening hours for restaurants and capping event attendances at 5,000 people. But it signals a growing concern about the current rate of infections, and appears to have piled pressure on Olympic organisers who had hoped to have up to 10,000 local fans in venues after barring overseas spectators.
Organisers met yesterday evening with local and national government officials and Olympic and Paralympic chiefs to make what Tokyo 2020 chief Seiko Hashimoto termed a “very difficult decision”. She said spectators would be barred from venues in Tokyo and three surrounding regions, which account for the majority of Olympic events.
Rules in other areas will vary, with limited spectators allowed in some regions. “I feel heartbreaking grief about this decision,” said Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. “But please watch the Games at home with your family in a safe and secure manner,” she told reporters.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), in a joint statement with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), said they respected the decision and “support it in the interest of safe and secure Games for everybody”. A decision on spectators at the Paralympic Games, which open on August 24, will not be taken until after the Olympics end, organisers said.