Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga started 2021 promising that the delayed Tokyo Olympics would go forward in July, at the same time as Japan contends with a surge in coronavirus instances and the rising price of an occasion that’s changing into more and more unpopular with the general public.
“The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Video games will probably be held this summer time,” Suga mentioned in a written assertion for the New 12 months, describing the occasion as a logo of world unity. “We’ll make regular preparations to understand a secure and safe event.”
Japan and the Worldwide Olympic Committee determined final March to postpone the video games by a yr because the coronavirus pandemic despatched a lot of the world into lockdown.
The video games, involving some 11,000 athletes from world wide, at the moment are because of happen throughout two weeks from July 23, with the Paralympics to observe afterwards. The occasion’s price range has elevated by about $2.4bn on account of the delay, organisers mentioned in December, bringing the full to greater than $15bn.
The yr of #Tokyo2020 is upon us! #UnitedByEmotion ?@Olympics & @Paralympics 2⃣0⃣2⃣1⃣??? pic.twitter.com/OEEgp63eq0
— #Tokyo2020 (@Tokyo2020) January 1, 2021
IOC president Thomas Bach, who visited Japan in November, reiterated the IOC’s dedication to the video games in a video to mark the beginning of the New 12 months, noting that Tokyo was the “finest ready” Olympic metropolis ever.
“These Olympic Video games would be the gentle on the finish of the tunnel,” Bach mentioned.
“They are going to be a celebration of solidarity, of the unity of humankind in all our variety, and of resilience.”
In Japan, nevertheless, public opinion additionally seems to be turning towards the occasion.
A survey printed by public broadcaster NHK in December discovered solely 27 % of individuals wished the video games to go forward, in contrast with 40 % in October. The proportion preferring cancellation rose to 32 %, in contrast with 23 % in October. The rest wished one other postponement, however the IOC has dominated that out.
With seven months to go, Japan is contending with a surge in instances of COVID-19, which reached file ranges in Tokyo and nationwide on December 31.
Suga, who took workplace in September following the resignation of Shinzo Abe, has been criticised for his authorities’s response to the wave of infections after he continued to again a now-suspended programme launched by his predecessor to advertise home tourism.
‘I prayed for finish to the pandemic’
The federal government urged Japanese to restrict their New 12 months celebrations to curb the unfold of the virus.
The New 12 months is among the greatest holidays in Japan when many companies, together with eating places, usually shut for every week to permit households to spend time collectively.
Individuals additionally pray at native temples, with some three million normally descending on the favored Meiji Jingu shrine in Tokyo.
This yr was quieter with masked guests queueing behind tape on the bottom to remain socially distant from each other.
“Final yr was filled with miserable information due to the coronavirus, so I prayed that individuals world wide would discover extra happiness,” a girl in her 40s referred to as Nami mentioned, after providing her prayers on the shrine.
“I prayed for a speedy finish to the pandemic,” mentioned Megumi, a sports activities coach in her 40s, including that she hopes to “get by the yr by having fun with the brand new ways in which I can join with associates.”
In his New 12 months assertion, Suga additionally promised to “defend the lives of the folks” and promising to work on “virus countermeasures and financial restoration”.
Japan has steered away from strict lockdowns as a substitute encouraging folks to put on masks, wash their arms and keep away from crowded and confined areas.
Whereas there’s mounting concern in regards to the present surge in instances, Japan’s outbreak seems restricted in contrast with elsewhere on the earth. The nation of almost 126.5 million folks has reported 3,341 deaths since recording its first case in January, in keeping with knowledge from Johns Hopkins College.