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he International Olympic Committee (IOC) have released their “playbook” in order to make the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games as COVID-safe as possible.
Both athletes and officials are expected to receive their manual within a week which will indicate multiple provisions to follow.
Athletes are limited to the Olympic Village for certain periods before and after their events, and are banned from partying and socialising outside the bubble, as well as being discouraged from singing their national anthem during award ceremonies.
IOC Olympic Games operations director, Pierre Ducrey, said at this time he hopes that spectators would act in accordance with Japanese government guidelines, should they be able to attend.
“At this stage we cannot say what the rule for spectators will be,” Ducrey said.
“Everybody needs to act responsibly and we’ll ask the spectators to respect a number of rules but at this point in time we’ve not looked into it,” he said.
A decision on whether there will be fans at the Olympics is expected in April.
Japan are still however currently recording thousands of new infections each day, with the nation still in a state of emergency.
With previous reports the Games would not go ahead if not completed in 2021, it is understandable rumours of postponement, or even cancellation, have been downplayed by both the IOC and Japanese Prime Minister, Yoshihide Suga.
Speaking to the ABC, vice-president of the IOC, John Coates, said he remains confident there will be no further postponements.
“They should go ahead, the Games, and they will go ahead,” Coates said.
“They’ve always been subject to the safety of the athletes and the Japanese people, but where those of us from the Olympic movement are concerned, we have to provide and keep that Olympic dream alive for all of our athletes,” he said.
Athletes and officials will not have to quarantine in hotels, rather, they would need to be tested 72 hours before departing their home country, then again on arrival, and then every four days.
