Voices
in
Japan

poll

What to do about the Tokyo Olympics?

36 Comments
© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

36 Comments
Login to comment

i,m not the expert but maybe 2021 ......

5 ( +10 / -5 )

Postpone. If for no other reason the Olympics might require resources - human and material - that could be better used in an array of other areas, for example health.

9 ( +14 / -5 )

Postpone at the least. Does anyone involved in this know what "pandemic" means?

10 ( +15 / -5 )

The Olympics are NOT important. Worry about them later.

6 ( +13 / -7 )

There should have been one more answer. They should be postponed to the fall of 2021.

5 ( +10 / -5 )

The Olympics will lose it's momentum and focus on Japan. If held this year the focus will all be on the virus and not Japan.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

I would have been to offer just : postpone. For now, choosing in between postponing to fall or to next year can be a bit early.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

I am Spanish living in tokyo. All my family and friends in Spain are locked down in their homes and it’s completely forbidden to leave since the state of emergency was released. hospitals are full.The numbers of infected people grew from 600 to 7,750 in less than a week. Meanwhile in Japan we need to pretend nothing is happening, I still have to go to work, take the train... every day I check this site hoping the government is taking some actions or addressing the issue but it is hopeless. The “official“ numbers of infected people in Japan is an insult to everyone’s intelligence but no one seems to really care to be fooled...

29 ( +32 / -3 )

they should cancel them.

3 ( +10 / -7 )

Just hold them with reduced audience and some athletes not able to come to Japan. Next year is not guaranteed to be any better. Could be new virii or who knows what.

-8 ( +3 / -11 )

Postpone them or cancel. Holding them this year seems pointless. The pandemic doesn't seem to have topped yet and many of the athletes are probably affected by it too. No one will be at the top of their game, I'm already hearing about many swimmers having a hard time finding water to train in. We really need to put the focus elsewhere than the Olympics globally.

5 ( +8 / -3 )

Now, in the current context, between the health scare, the upoming economic crash, the weather...frankly : what do we care about that detail ?

For me, they can cancel the Olympics for good... virus or not. It's big business, cheating, corruption, waste and so little sport spirit in it.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Postpone and do it immediately.

I am sick of having the impression that the Abe government is wasting attention and resources on the Olympics rather than fully focusing on protecting public health.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

This is a golden opportunity to prioritize the athletes' health and safety and move the Games to the autumn (or spring 2021) and undo the ridiculous idea of holding them in the 35°C heat of Tokyo summer, which should never have been allowed.

7 ( +8 / -1 )

I do enjoy how the government's current plan (holding them as scheduled) isn't even an option in this poll.

Kind of shows how ridiculous it is.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

There is a good chance that the problem will more or less go away once the temperatures increase.

They could also carry out the events without crowds and regularly test all athletes.

Or if they choose to delay it a few months, they might be able to have the marathon in Tokyo.

-8 ( +0 / -8 )

Raw Beer

There is a good chance that the problem will more or less go away once the temperatures increase.

Based upon... what? Mirroring off influenza viruses? There are other coronavirus (not COVID-19) that do just fine in the temperatures of northern Africa (heard one expert - Michael Osterholm - discussing one that, at the moment, only affects camels).

There's zero evidence that what you suggests is true, and much to the contrary.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

There is a good chance that the problem will more or less go away once the temperatures increase.

Because then they'll have to report/cancel/move the circus due to too high temperatures for outdoor sports or even for audience to sit without air con...

0 ( +1 / -1 )

UEFA European Championship will be delayed by a year, held in summer 2021. The 4 year-interval football competition has always been scheduled alongside the Summer Olympics. So there may be an indication....

Euro 2020 postponed until next summer, Uefa confirms

www.bbc.com/sport/football/51909518

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I'm with the 46% who say they should be postponed to 2021.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

And you miss the point - athletes are not training. While Japan is still focussed on the Olympics it can’t fight the virus.

Doing both can’t happen. Postpone

0 ( +2 / -2 )

@Iñigo Gutiérrez Uzquiza

The “official“ numbers of infected people in Japan is an insult to everyone’s intelligence but no one seems to really care to be fooled...

Are you infected now? Local governments are counting numbers of infected people/deaths across Japan, they will submit those data to the central government. I doubt the official number is a lie. If Japan accepts millions of people for CPR test, hospitals are going to be out of control and in big panic just like Italy or China. Most of people are actually no symptom or mild symptom or worry a lot about it. So doctors will have to select serious symptom patients out of all outpatients, these patients will take CPR test. If test is positive, then they are hospitalized/quarantined.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

Originally, I was thinking that it was not the right time to hold the Olympics in Japan when Japan was elected as a venue. At that period, for example, Tohoku areas were struggling for long term aftermass of the disaster such as Fukushima nuclear power plant or negative rumors for the produces harvested in that areas. Although the government says "Olympics for Fukushima's reconstruction", the main problems have not still been solved. As a matter of fact, new problems come from them have occerd recently. According to the news, even though the JR Jyoban line resumed its operational service in the seriouly damaged are in Tohoku areas, passerngers and residents who lived there still cannot walk around the towns after arriving at the stations, due to suspended decontamination. In that situation, the areas which have not seriouly been affected by the disaster are on the spotlight... I do not think that is not fair and the conditions of Fukushima areas get better after the Olympics. I'm afraid that Tokyo should not have attended to the Olympic election at that time (I'm really sorry for the people who related to the selection of the event).

0 ( +0 / -0 )

They should be canceled. The Spanish flu lasted from 1918 until 1920. All our attention and resources should be given to dealing with this world crisis.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

They should be canceled. The Spanish flu lasted from 1918 until 1920. All our attention and resources should be given to dealing with this world crisis.

Spot on.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

I understand having flexibility for big organization is difficult but please reconsider it.

What is the problem to postpone Olympic?

1 ( +2 / -1 )

If it can be moved, then they should move it to September or October. The sports calendar for 2021 is already full. No space to accommodate an Olympics.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Either postpone or Japan will be for ever be associated with the worst and most disastrous Olympics since their inception two and a half millennia ago!

1 ( +1 / -0 )

There is a good chance that the problem will more or less go away once the temperatures increase.

When even Kind Old King Manbaby I has moved away from this point of view, you have to seriously reassess your thought processes, such as they are.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

The Olympic Games have become a grotesque mutation of what they used to be.

They cause corruption, waste, environmental damage, monstrous unused edifices, huge tax burdens on ordinary people and general disruption.

In their present form they should be scrapped entirely

1 ( +3 / -2 )

The “official“ numbers of infected people in Japan is an insult to everyone’s intelligence but no one seems to really care to be fooled...

Is your intelligence insulted by China’s figures as well?

1 ( +2 / -1 )

The Spanish flu lasted from 1918 until 1920.

And the infection rate was greatly reduced during the summer months. If Tokyo is too hot for a summer marathon...

If it turns out this virus is more heat tolerant, then they can decide to cancel or postpone. Until then, why not wait and see.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites