Fukushima, in reversal, bars spectators from Olympic events

Japan's Fukushima prefecture will bar spectators from the Olympic events it hosts this summer due to rising COVID-19 infections, its governor said on Saturday, reversing a position announced two days earlier by organisers.

FILE PHOTO: Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium, which will host the baseball and softball competitions during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, is seen in Fukushima, Japan, February 19, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File PhotoTOKYO: Japan's Fukushima prefecture will bar spectators from the Olympic events it hosts this summer due to rising COVID-19 infections, its governor said on Saturday, reversing a position announced two days earlier by organisers.

Organisers on Thursday said there would be no spectators in host city Tokyo as a resurgent coronavirus forced Japan to declare a state of emergency in the capital that will run throughout the Games, which were already postponed due to the pandemic.But they said some spectators would be allowed in Fukushima and several other prefectures outside the capital. On Friday Olympics organisers said soccer matches in Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido would be held without spectators.

Fukushima in northern Japan, hosting seven softball and baseball games, asked Olympics organisers to ban spectators and the request was accepted, Governor Masao Uchibori told a news conference on Saturday. The Olympics had been seen as an opportunity for Japan to shine on a global stage after a devastating earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster - which destroyed a plant in Fukushima - a decade ago. The Games, postponed last year, have also been hit by massive budget overruns.

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Spectators to face Olympic ban as Tokyo declares COVID-19 emergency: ReportOlympic organisers are set to ban all spectators from the Games, the Asahi daily said on Thursday (Jul 8), as Japan declared a COVID-19 state of ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Olympic flame arrives in Tokyo for no-spectator relayTOKYO — The Olympic flame arrived in Tokyo on Friday (July 9) but the public was kept away from a low-key welcoming ceremony over coronavirus fears, after a
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

The S$50,000 man: Olympic fan's world record dream shattered by Tokyo spectator banTOKYO — Mr Kazunori Takishima's Olympic dream of setting a world record — a plan that had cost him almost S$50,000 — ended this week when organisers said spectators would be banned for most of the Games events.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Olympics-We all regret no fans at Tokyo Games, says IOC's BachThe Tokyo Olympics will have a different feel with spectators banned from the venues due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but International Olympic ...
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Resignation, anger as Japan digests Tokyo Olympic fan banTOKYO: Olympic fans in Japan reacted with weary resignation to a ban on Tokyo Games spectators on Friday (Jul 9), as newspaper editorials warned ... Singapore should pull-out of the olympics to avoid any infection. As the infections in Japan getting worse, Singapore should reconsider its participation.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Olympics-For Tokyo 2020 ticketholders, an Olympic dream gets dashedEven as several events in the run-up to the Olympics were cancelled and the number of domestic spectators capped, Ryuichi Ishikawa had clung to ... Wonderful news
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »