Status: 07/08/2021 3:52 p.m.
Foreign spectators had already been excluded from the Olympic Games because of the corona pandemic – now the Games are taking place entirely without an audience. The Japanese government announced this.
The Olympic Games in Tokyo take place without any spectators. In order to contain the corona virus, no domestic audience will be admitted, said Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa after talks by IOC President Thomas Bach with representatives of the Japanese government and the Tokyo city administration, among others.
State of emergency due to increasing numbers
The organizers have agreed on this. “We had no other choice,” said Japan’s Olympic boss Seiko Hashimoto. Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had previously extended the corona emergency for the capital region until August 22. The reason for the now fourth state of emergency for Tokyo are again significantly increasing numbers of infections.
Foreign viewers had been excluded some time ago. Until recently, the Olympic organizers had stuck to their plans to allow up to 10,000 domestic fans per competition in the arenas. The games are scheduled from July 23rd to August 8th and will take place in venues in Tokyo and in three neighboring prefectures.
Petition against games
Many people in Japan have long feared that the games could turn into a super-spreader event. In the country there was strong criticism of the adherence to the plans, medical representatives had submitted a petition for the complete cancellation of the games.
Japan’s Olympic organizers and the IOC have always emphasized that everything will be “safe”.
Bach arrived in the Olympic city on Thursday and went into a three-day quarantine in a five-star hotel in the city center. One will show responsibility and “support all measures that are necessary for safe games for Japan’s population and the participants”, affirmed Bach at the beginning of the deliberations on the audience question.
Increasing numbers of infections
On the day of Bach’s arrival, Tokyo city authorities reported 896 new cases of infection. The number of new infections has now been 19 days above the value on the same day of the previous week.