Tokyo Olympic Committee Eyes Spectator-Free Games

With the Tokyo Olympics less than a month away, spectator seats and tickets remain up in the air.

According to The Associated Press, Tokyo Olympic organizing committee president Seiko Hashimoto said Friday that it’s possible there will be no spectators at the Games, which were postponed last summer and are scheduled to run from July 23 through August 8.

“What I feel is that no spectating should remain an option for us as we look into things,” Hashimoto said. “The situation is changing from time to time so that is why we need to remain flexible and prompt in responding to any change. A no-spectator games is one of our options.”

The current plan is to allow 10,000 local fans into venues, with each indoor and outdoor venue holding 50 percent of its capacity. Hashimoto’s latest press conference came a day after the Tokyo Metropolitan Government reported that Tokyo’s seven-day average of COVID-19 infections grew by 11 percent in the last week.

Two Ugandan team members tested positive for the Delta variant of coronavirus upon entry to Japan last week.

The AP reported that about 9 percent of Japan’s population have been fully vaccinated, while there have been about 780,000 coronavirus cases in the country.

Related: Tokyo Bans International Spectators from Olympics

Related: Report: Huge Economic Hit if Olympic Games Canceled