On Monday November 16th, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, said that he was “very confident” about the possibility of having spectators at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, currently scheduled for the summer of 2021 (July 23 – August 8), after being postponed earlier this year due to the pandemic. Bach praised the control measures being prepared by the local organizing committee and the Japanese government during a visit to the Japanese capital.
After a meeting in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Bach told the press that he was confident about the possibility of having spectators in the Olympic stadiums next year.
“We are putting together a huge toolbox of measures,” he said. “We will be able to use those tools to ensure a safe environment for all participants.” Bach is currently on a two-day visit to Tokyo. He pledged that, if a vaccine is available by July, the IOC will go to great lengths to ensure that as many participants and spectators as possible are vaccinated before they arrive in Japan.
Bach’s visit is meant to build confidence among athletes, Japanese citizens and Olympic sponsors that the Games will be held. The resurgence of infections in much of the world coupled with the containment measures, have raised questions whether the Games will be held next year if the pandemic continues.
Japanese media has reported that the public in Japan remains skeptical, and that more than 60% of national sponsors have not yet committed to extending their contracts for another year. Olympic organizers and Japanese officials insisted that a further postponement or a cancellation was not an option. Prime Minister Suga stated that the successful realization of the Olympic Games would serve as “proof that mankind has defeated the virus”.
