Time.news – “Japan could give up the Tokyo Olympics if the increase in coronavirus cases in the country made the event impossible”.
This is reported by Toshihiro Nikai, general secretary of the Liberal Democratic Party within the Japanese government, to the Japanese news agency Kyodo News about the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, already postponed by one year following the Covid-19 pandemic. .
Japan is grappling with an increase in coronavirus infections and Osaka yesterday recorded a record 1,130 new cases.
“If the situation is impossible we must make a decision without hesitation. What would be the meaning of the Olympics if we spread this infectious disease to many people during the Olympics? “, said by Toshihiro Nikai, general secretary of the Liberal Democratic Party.
It is the first time that in 2021 the actual conduct of the Olympics is questioned, and therefore also the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. The Games of the XXXII Olympiad, scheduled for last year, have been postponed for a year following the coronavirus pandemic. The new dates for the five-circle event are 23 July – 8 August 2021. The absence of foreign audiences is already certain and in the coming weeks it will be evaluated if and in what terms there will be the presence of Japanese spectators.
Experts say Japan is experiencing a fourth wave of Covid-19 with official data showing more than 36,000 active cases and variant strains putting enormous pressure on the health system. The Japanese government, the metropolitan city of Tokyo, the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee and the International Olympic Committee are however continuing to prepare for the Olympics.
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