Japan PM says won't rule out no spectators at Olympics if Tokyo under state of emergency
Reuters
June 21, 2021 16:04 MYT
June 21, 2021 16:04 MYT
Hand sanitizers and signs for COVID-19 countermeasures are placed at the entrance of the fitness center at the multi-function complex of Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Village in Tokyo, Japan, June 20, 2021. REUTERSpic
TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Monday that he would not rule out holding the Summer Olympics in Tokyo without spectators if the capital was under a state of emergency due to COVID-19 worries.
"In the event a state of emergency was declared then we can't rule out not having spectators," Suga told reporters during a tour of a vaccination site in Tokyo.
Olympic organizers are expected to decide later on Monday on whether to allow spectators at Olympic events, which begin next month. Suga lifted a state of emergency for Tokyo last week, but kept in place "quasi-emergency" restrictions until July 11.