Six months after the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics and Para, new corona measures to be taken September 24, 16:12
It has been six months since the one-year postponement of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics was decided.
The biggest challenge for holding the tournament is countermeasures against the new coronavirus, which continues to be infected, but the tournament faces difficult challenges as to how to ensure safety and keep costs down.
The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics have been postponed for about a year for the first time in the history of the Games on March 24, following the worldwide spread of the new coronavirus.
In the last six months, the Olympic Games will start on July 23, next year, and the Paralympics will start on August 24, and it has been decided that the competition venue and competition schedule will be the same as this year, but the infection with the new coronavirus will continue worldwide. Attention is being paid to how we can hold a large-scale general competition that attracts people from all over the world next summer.
The IOC = International Olympic Committee and the Organizing Committee have begun discussions on the biggest issue of countermeasures against the new corona virus. such as prevention at the venue, our policy is to summarize the major measures in the prospect of the end of the year.
In addition, we would like to simplify the operation and service review and minimize the increase from the tournament expenses of 1,350 billion yen due to postponement.
On the other hand, the number of spectators that can be accommodated depends on the infection situation, so it is unclear at this point in time, and preparations such as infection control measures, transportation, and ticket handling will change depending on the number of spectators.
The postponed tournament faces a difficult challenge as to how to ensure safety and keep costs down.
Athletics infection control
The All Japan Athletics Championships, which began on the 18th of this month in Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture, will be held for three days with the entry of approximately 1,400 athletes, which is the largest athletics competition for working adults in Japan. Thorough infection control measures were taken for athletes and staff.
This tournament was held without spectators, but the tournament organizer paid attention to the "secret measures" of the stands that the team members watch.
The patrol staff repeatedly performed a "dense check" to look around the stand.
On the first day of the tournament, if you discover a situation where the stands are crowded, you will be alerted on the spot and immediately reported to the broadcasting room by radio, and then an announcement will be made in the hall to avoid crowding. It was the first time.
In addition, in order to reduce the risk of infection for staff, we held three "supervisory meetings" before the competition.
It is customary to gather all staff in the same place for a "supervisory meeting" to explain the precautions for the competition.
However, this tournament has a large number of participating teams of about 450, and if the people concerned gather in the conference room at the same time, the so-called "three crowds" cannot be avoided.
For this reason, we held three meetings for each competition and reduced contact as much as possible by making one-way access to the room.
In addition, post-race interviews where athletes and the press come into contact were conducted online using a personal computer in principle, and the athletes sat in front of the personal computer and answered the reporter's questions over the screen.
At the end of the day, staff took thorough infection control throughout the tournament, such as wiping the stand seats and fences with towels and disinfectants.
Katsumitsu Sakai, chairman of the Japan Business Association Athletics Association, who hosted the tournament, said, "I was worried because I was groping, but I was able to take detailed measures against infection under the theme of safety and security. I came while emulating the measures for the tournament, but I think that a new type of tournament has taken root. I would like to make use of the know-how of this tournament in the future. "
Distress of the bus industry responsible for transportation
The bus industry, which is responsible for the transportation of people involved in the tournament, has been greatly affected by the past six months, and we are worried about the outlook for the tournament.
At the request of the Organizing Committee, the Tokyo bus company "Toto Kanko Bus" will provide 100 buses, which is half of the tourist buses it owns, for transportation to and from competition referees, the press, and sponsors. I was planning to do it.
However, the request was once canceled due to the postponement of the tournament.
During this time, the company's sales fell due to the impact of the new coronavirus, and bus sales from March to last month were only 2% last year.
Most of the 200 drivers are also closed and waiting at home.
On the other hand, even when I was not working, I was busy with measures such as installing infection prevention sheets on vehicles.
Meanwhile, from last month to this month, we were verbally asked if we could secure the same number of cars during the next year's tournament, but we have not reached a formal contract.
The company is uncertain whether the tournament will be held, and even if it does, the simplification of the tournament could reduce the number of buses required.
President Katsuhiko Miyamoto said, "I expect that if the tournament is on schedule, we will be able to get a lot of work done, so if possible, we would like to hold it without reducing the scale."
According to industry groups, it is not uncommon for companies in the chartered bus industry to be in a more serious business situation, and some are concerned that they will not be in business until next year's convention.
Many companies pay their drivers salaries with national employment adjustment subsidies in the absence of work, but the special measures for employment adjustment subsidies will expire in December.
Unless there is a continuous lack of work and the special measures for employment adjustment subsidies are not extended, the employment of drivers cannot be maintained and some bus companies may go bankrupt.
If that happens, it will be difficult to secure the necessary buses and drivers during the tournament.
President Miyamoto of "Toto Kanko Bus", who also serves as the chairman of the charter department of the Tokyo Bus Association, said, "The industry as a whole wants to cooperate with the tournament, but the influence of Corona is serious and dying. There is a risk that it will disappear. I would like to request further enhancement of national support measures. "
To customer service using JR East robots
Countermeasures against the new coronavirus will be the biggest issue for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
As the need for "contactless" services that avoid contact with people is increasing, JR East is conducting demonstration experiments to introduce customer service using robots.
Of these, at "Takanawa Gateway Station" on the JR Yamanote Line, various robots have been operating inside the station since it opened in March.
In the concourse inside the ticket gate, a "guidance robot" that uses AI = artificial intelligence to explain station facilities in response to human voices is installed, and an autonomous mobile "security robot" is installed at the station. The user was patrolling while walking.
The security robot can detect a visually impaired person with a "white eye" with a sensor and notify the security guard's tablet of the location, which is useful for efficient assistance and security.
JR East plans to proceed with demonstration experiments centered on Takanawa Gateway Station and introduce it in earnest in the future, saying that customer service by robots will lead to "non-contact" hospitality and labor shortages whose needs are increasing due to the spread of infection. is.
Advance robot development by each manufacturer
In preparation for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, each manufacturer is developing technology for robots that can be used to combat the new coronavirus.
Six companies participated in the demonstration experiment conducted in Minato-ku, Tokyo from the 14th to the 17th of this month.
Of these, Softbank has developed an autonomous driving robot, "Cuboid-kun," which is equipped with an ultraviolet irradiation unit.
According to the manufacturer, it is expected that the bactericidal effect of walls and floors within a radius of 2 meters can be expected by irradiating with strong ultraviolet rays, and it is considered that it is also effective for the new corona virus from domestic and overseas research, and verification is advanced. I am doing it.
By setting map data and movement routes, it is possible to drive autonomously, and when a person is detected, it is possible to automatically stop the irradiation of ultraviolet rays or move around obstacles.
In addition, you can call the elevator yourself to carry your luggage to another floor, and we are aiming to introduce it to hotels and restaurants in the future.
Tomohiko Furuya, Chief of the SoftBank AI Robot Development Division, said, "Even in the case of Corona, I would like to proceed with the experiment with a sense of speed so that customers can enjoy it with peace of mind by sterilizing it at night at accommodation facilities and event venues." I was talking.
Meanwhile, "contactless" robots are also being developed one after another.
The directions robot "Cruzr" developed by Dentsu Tec can speak in four languages: Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean, and when you tell the destination, you can show the direction by hand and then display the map. In addition to being able to send it to your destination, it will guide you to your destination.
In the future, we would like to hurry to strengthen voice recognition so that we can operate it without touching it with our fingers.
The robot that displays advertisements developed by machine parts manufacturer THK runs autonomously, and when a person approaches, the sensor recognizes it and stops.
This means that the advertisements to be displayed can be switched remotely, and the operator can explain through the monitor using a videophone.