It will be half a year in 23 days until the opening of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
We have summarized the issues for the Tokyo Games.
The number of athletes participating in the Tokyo Olympics is planned to be about 11,000 in 339 events in 33 competitions, and the Organizing Committee and the IOC have said that the number of athletes will basically be maintained even in the case of Corona.
As for the measures against corona of athletes, in addition to conducting regular inspections, we will limit the places where we can work from entry to departure, and in principle, we will move by a dedicated car to avoid contact with the outside.
In the next six months, it will be necessary to concretely implement the test and decide on the medical aspects such as hospitalization and medical treatment system when infection is confirmed, and how the competition should be run.
Torch relay to avoid congestion along the road
The Olympic torch relay will start in Fukushima Prefecture on March 25, about two months later, and about 10,000 runners will travel around the country over 121 days.
The number of 859 municipalities to be implemented and the number of days to be implemented in each prefecture have not changed from the plan before the postponement.
As for corona countermeasures, measures to avoid congestion of spectators along the road are issues, and the executive committees of each prefecture will consider specific management methods such as how to deal with celebrity runners running. It has become.
The tournament organizing committee is the prefecture that carries out the relay, and if an emergency declaration is issued during that period, the relay in which people run is postponed, only the event that brought the torch is held, and the next connection is made. It means that we are informing the executive committees of each prefecture and considering alternatives.
Corona measures at the competition venue
There are 43 competition venues for the Tokyo Games, both existing and new, with a capacity of approximately 3,000 to 72,000.
All the remaining equipment work such as temporary spectator seats and lighting was suspended for the actual production after the decision to postpone it, but after that, as a result of discussions on simplification by reducing additional costs, the temporary spectator seats It is said that the reduction and review of the decoration have been decided, and the construction is being resumed sequentially from this January.
The challenge is to take measures against corona in the competition venues, and in order to prevent infection of athletes, we are considering the flow lines and area divisions that minimize contact with the competition staff, etc. for each venue.
In addition, securing medical staff who will be active at the competition venue is also a major issue, and it is difficult to coordinate with the medical institutions that are tight in Corona.
Securing the Olympic Village medical system
The Olympic Village is characterized by being a place where athletes can interact with each other regardless of country, region, or competition. It is set up in Harumi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, and can accommodate approximately 18,000 people.
Until now, the length of stay in the Olympic Village was determined by the teams of each country, but as a countermeasure against infection, the IOC has indicated that it will be possible to enter the village 5 days before the start of the competition and move out 2 days after the competition ends. ..
In addition, Paralympic athletes will be able to enter the village 7 days before the start of the competition.
In the future, specific measures will be considered, such as securing a medical system at clinics where fever outpatients are set up and alleviating congestion at eating places and training facilities.
A different way of watching games
As for spectators, about 4.45 million Olympic tickets and about 970,000 Paralympic games were sold in Japan, and due to the postponement of the Games, about 20% of the refunds were applied for each.
For this reason, about 3.6 million tickets are sold in Japan at the Olympic Games.
As the infection continues to spread around the world, the maximum number of spectators and the acceptance of spectators from overseas will be decided by spring, and the Games Organizing Committee will re-ticket in case it becomes necessary to reduce the number of spectators. We are developing a system for drawing lots.
In addition, the policy is to set guidelines for infection prevention for spectators, and it is prohibited to make noise or talk loudly at the competition venue, and there is a possibility that a different way of watching the game will be required.
The movement of players and related parties
Transportation is a department that supports the movement of athletes, related parties, and spectators, and the corona measures here are for basic infection prevention such as wearing masks and suppressing conversation, and in principle, athletes are dedicated. We plan to move it by car and constantly ventilate the inside of the car with an air conditioner.
The number of vehicles used at the competition is being reviewed in terms of both simplification to reduce costs and corona measures to avoid congestion.
For example, 2190 buses were planned to be procured from bus operators nationwide before the postponement, but we are hoping to determine the new required number by March.
Traffic regulations for smooth movement are being considered under the same policy as before the postponement.
Tournament Volunteer Infectious disease prevention measures
Approximately 80,000 volunteers are hired for the competition, called "field casts," who are active in competition venues and the Olympic Village.
Regarding those who declined due to the postponement of the Games, it can be estimated from the questionnaire conducted by the Organizing Committee by September last year that about 700 people could not participate, and the infection situation of Corona has become severe since then. However, the Organizing Committee has not announced the number of people who declined, and says that there will be no problem with the operation of the Games at this stage.
The training that started in the fall of 2019 has stopped now, but we plan to resume it from April while utilizing online, and we will start by role from April and by venue from June to prevent infectious diseases. Will also be known.
Opening Ceremony Infection Control for Athletes' Admission March
The opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic Games is from 8:00 pm to 11:00 pm according to the conventional plan, and a series of 4 including the closing ceremony and the opening and closing ceremony of the Paralympics by a team led by Kyogen master Mansai Nomura. It has been considered as a part work.
However, in order to aim for a simple ceremony due to the postponement of the tournament, the content of the production and planning has been reviewed with the new creative director Hiroshi Sasaki appointed as the general manager.
The issue is how to scale the entrance march of the team at the opening ceremony and how to build infection control measures including the place where the team waits.
Reexamination of host town exchange business
About 30% of the host towns of the Tokyo Games are registered with more than 500 local governments, and there are more than 180 countries and regions that accept training camps before the Games and interact with residents.
The government is requesting each local government to prepare a manual that summarizes the infection prevention measures for the new coronavirus, such as transportation and inspection systems, and the local governments must formulate specific measures according to the actual situation.
In addition, regarding exchange projects, it is recommended to avoid contact and prior exchanges, and the contents have to be reexamined.
Test tournament Verification of spectators and overseas players entering and leaving the country
In the test tournament, 56 tournaments were scheduled to be held mainly at the actual venue in order to confirm the management procedure and issues by the tournament organizing committee etc., but 17 tournaments were not held due to the postponement of the tournament. ..
The rest of the tournament will be held from March to May, and five of them, such as gymnastics and athletics, will actually include spectators and participate overseas based on the upper limit of the number of spectators scheduled to be decided by spring. We will also verify the immigration control of athletes and transportation to the venue to identify issues.