TOKYO (Dispatches) - Japan is looking at barring all but VIP spectators at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, a newspaper said on Tuesday, another downgrade for Games that have their pomp and public spectacle overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Once promoted as an extravaganza to showcase Japan to the world, the Games appear in danger of taking place largely out of public view in a country closed to foreign tourists due to the pandemic.
The Games, already delayed a year, are set to open on July 23 despite concern that an influx of tens of thousands of people from around the world could unleash another wave of infections.
Japan’s government is arranging for the opening ceremony to be held with only a reduced number of VIP spectators, the Asahi newspaper reported, ahead of talks with the International Olympic Committee and other organizers.