DIE Olympic Games Continue to shrink to the rhythm of counting rhyme in Japan. On Thursday, organizers excluded spectators in the capital Tokyo and three neighboring counties to reduce the risk of increased Covid infection. In the five more distant regions, when the epidemic situation does not seem to be worrying, a limited number of spectators should still be allowed to watch football, softball and baseball games. These decisions are now shaky.
Mo. -Priest at 4 pm; Sa. – and so.18:00
On Friday, the northernmost prefecture in Hokkaido announced that it would not allow spectators to watch football matches at the Hokkaido Dome. Fukushima Prefecture held a softball and baseball game in Fukushima City on Saturday. This means that Miyagi (soccer) and Shizuoka (track and field bicycles) still allow spectators to watch the Olympics. Ibaraki only wants school children to participate in football matches, and they should learn about the sport and the international atmosphere through a special ticket plan.
However, the organizers did not rule out the cancellation of these three counties. According to a press release from the Olympic Organizing Committee, there are currently no plans for changes in these areas.
For Fukushima Prefecture, this decision is particularly painful. It hopes to use the competition to draw people’s attention to the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident and how much the area has recovered. “The number of infected people in this prefecture is increasing, and it is not optimistic,” Governor Uchibori said in defense of the decision. On July 21st, the softball match between Japan and Australia will be held in Fukushima as the first sporting event before the official opening.
President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas BachAt the same time, Saturday turned to the athletes in the video message and promised that although almost all stadiums have no audience, they will still attract a large number of audiences. “The situation will be completely different, but you don’t need to feel alone in the stadium,” Bach said. “Billions of people from all over the world will be tied to the screen. I hope you can feel this support.”
The International Olympic Committee expects that more than 5 billion people will watch the game on TV. Bach explained the reason for the refusal to the audience, because the players should play in a safe environment.
