Welcome to the Tokyo Olympics where public health, money and politics collide

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When the Olympic torch was relayed, it was late at night in the streets of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. A viral video Shows the torchbearer slowly jogging past the spectators on both sides of the road. Then, as the flame passed by, a woman in the crowd fired a water cannon.

“Extinguish the Olympic flame! Oppose the Tokyo Olympics!” she shouted. The security guard hurried over by her side.

This is the backdrop for the Olympic and Paralympic Games that will begin in Tokyo on July 23, where the number of covid-19 cases is rising, prompting the city to declare its fourth state of emergency since the pandemic began. The increasing number of cases is particularly disturbing because the country’s vaccination rate is still very low. Only 18% of the population in Japan has been vaccinated.

Despite this, the International Olympic Committee is still putting pressure on it.What’s at stake Billions of dollars Among the sunk costs-Tokyo Olympic Stadium Only $1.4 billion spent–and Billions Potential income from the International Olympic Committee, Japan, local organizers and broadcasters.

A global health crisis that is far from over, huge amounts of money, and the government began to pay off bets: the conflict in Tokyo is unprecedented. Even with strict new rules in the game, experts are worried that covid-19 may worsen in Japan.

Ensure the safety of athletes

It is expected that nearly 100,000 athletes, staff, family members and others will enter Japan to participate in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the organizers said they are doing their best to ensure their safety.

Brian McCloskey, chair of the independent panel that advised the International Olympic Committee on Tokyo’s covid-19 mitigation measures, acknowledged these concerns. He said that in order to reduce the risk of the spread of the virus, athletes, staff and others will be closely monitored.

“The goal is not that Tokyo is free of coronavirus,” McCloskey said. “The goal is to prevent these individual cases from becoming clusters and spreading incidents.”

Athletes, staff and officials will be tested at different time intervals during the competition. For example, residents of the Olympic Village will be tested daily, and Japanese workers who are in close contact with athletes will be tested more frequently than those who direct traffic. McCloskey said the Olympic Village will use a contact tracing system to help control any cases that arise. Anyone entering Japan will be required to download a contact tracking application, and athletes and media members will be required to turn on GPS tracking on their mobile phones. Organizers stated that location data will only be used when there is a new coronavirus case.

As the game approaches, the measures have become more and more stringent. Spectators from other countries were banned a few months ago, and it was announced earlier this month that there would be no spectators in Tokyo and surrounding venues.

“This is not just the event itself, but everything else related to the event: hotels, restaurants, transportation.”

Linsey Marr, Professor, Virginia Tech

McCloskey said that there is a precedent for running games under public health threats-even if the early games were of a different scale than the new coronavirus. He said that when he advised the IOC for the 2012 London Olympics, the organizers considered the possibility of a SARS pandemic. Before the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, people were concerned about the Zika virus (WHO). Later No cases have been reported among athletes or spectators).

For Tokyo, the International Olympic Committee has issued several instructional “handbooks” for athletes, staff, volunteers and the media.

But despite strict rules, gaming will inevitably mean people mixing and interacting in ways that would not otherwise happen.

“It’s not just the incident itself,” said Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, a leading expert in the airborne transmission of viruses. “This is everything related to the event: hotels, restaurants, transportation.”

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