Welcome to the Tokyo Olympics, where health, finance, and politics clash

It is nighttime in the streets of Ibaraki in Japan when the Olympic lantern passes by. Viral video showing the slow-moving runners passing the spectators sitting on the street. Then, as the flame passed, the mother of the group threw a water rifle.

“Turn off the flames of the Olympics! Oppose the Tokyo Olympics! ”She shouts. Security surrounds him.

This is how the Olympics and Paralympics are coming, starting on July 23 in Tokyo – where covid-19 cases are on the rise, prompting the city to announce a fourth if the outbreak begins. Rising issues are particularly acute because the country’s vaccine remains low. Only 18% of Japanese people are fully vaccinated.

However, the International Olympic Committee continues. It is at risk billions of dollars at a low price –Tokyo Olympic Stadium itself cost $ 1.4 billion – as well billions more in potential funds to the IOC, Japan, local organizers, and publishers.

The imminent global health crisis, the high cost of living, and the government’s assertion that gambling is paying off: the situation in Tokyo is unprecedented. And despite the new rules in the game, experts are concerned that covid-19 could grow in Japan.

Keeping athletes safe

About 100,000 athletes, co-workers and relatives, and others are expected to enter Japan for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and organizers say they are working hard to protect themselves.

Brian McCloskey, chairman of the IOC’s independent advisory body on the 19th issue in Tokyo, acknowledges the challenges. In order to reduce the spread of the virus, athletes, co-workers, and others will be closely monitored, he says.

“The target will not be coronaviruses in Tokyo,” McCloskey said. “The purpose is to prevent the charges from being fabricated and to disseminate the information.”

Athletes, staff, and rehearsals will be tested at various times during the game. Residents of Olympic Village will be tested daily, for example, while Japanese workers who are more involved with athletes will be tested more frequently than those who drive cars. McCloskey says the connection method will be used in the Olympic Village to resolve any issues that may arise. Anyone entering Japan will need to download the tracking app, and runners and journalists are asked to turn on GPS tracking on their phones. The developers say the information on where it can be used can be used in case of covid cases.

As the game approaches, the channels have grown significantly. Foreign members were banned months ago, and it was announced earlier this month that there would be no audience anywhere in the Tokyo suburbs.

McCloskey says there is a way to run the game in the midst of public health risk — although the original was not the same as covid. When advising the IOC at the London Olympics in 2012, organizers saw the possibility of a SARS outbreak, he said. And before the 2016 game in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, there were complaints from Zika (WHO then he said there were no cases involving athletes or spectators).

For Tokyo, the IOC has released a number of “playbooks” of instructions for athletes, colleagues, volunteers, and journalists.

But despite the strict rules, the game means that people will mix and interact in ways that would not be possible.

“It’s not just a coincidence,” says Linsey Marr, professor of architecture and ecology at Virginia Tech, a well-known virus specialist. “That’s all it has to do with the event: hotels, restaurants, transportation.”