Can Tokyo Olympics be held with spectators?

Just hold the Olympics without foreign athletes too. Locals aren't subjected to foreigners. The Japanese win all the medals. Japan gets to hold the Olympics. Certain people and companies will get their cut of the money. A win-win-win-win situation.

What will people attending the Olympics encounter?

Well, I attempted to change foreign currency yesterday (twice) and was basically refused as “there aren’t any tourists going out of Japan”

Having wasted 20 minutes of my time was not a huge problem and I have several ayen accounts here but imagine not being able to get money to pay a bill in Japan as a foreign tourist without access to funds?

It is not the first time being denied a particular service as a foreigner but imagine this being repeated thousands of times (to tourists) due to innate prejudice and fear of the virus?

It won’t be a happy situation, will it?

We already had an article about the Olympics without spectators. Enough already. Whatever. The majority here are seriously tired of reading speculative articles about the Olympics. If there is actual NEWS about the event then fair enough. But other than that, I would say the overwhelming public just don't give a poop anymore.

If Japan is going to hold it then hold it and lets be done with it. bombarding the public with useless articles about the event is likely to cause even more weariness regarding the event

 Naofumi Masumoto, a visiting professor of Olympic studies at Tokyo Metropolitan University and Musashino University...

A full professor of Olympic Studies? Sounds like something right out of the Onion. Even the profs analysis of the situation. Early April Fool's?

Richard Gallagher, perhaps you fell for it?

 Naofumi Masumoto, a visiting professor of Olympic studies at Tokyo Metropolitan University and Musashino University. "Holding the events without spectators will take away the opportunity to promote cross-cultural understanding and cultural exchanges," he said, while emphasizing that safety is the priority when making a final call. "It will be against the ideals of the Olympics, especially because children cannot interact with people from around the world," he said, making it more comparable to a world championships than the multi-sport extravaganza it should be.

One of the more bizarre rationalities for not just 'holding' the Olympics, but including foreign spectators: It is a cross-cultural event with cultural exchanges. The oddity of that statement, it just hangs in the air without any actual context. It has no measured impact, let alone is there any actual notion, let alone evidence it is actually meaningful. For certain, the interactions among what are essentially tourists is not dependent on The Olympics. They book rooms, eat at restaurants, tour the recommended sites and attend athletic contests. The only difference is 'the draw' to visit Japan. In fact, it is focused on one specific activity and location and generates numbers. Not exactly a sustainable model for an income stream and very wedded to the industrial tourism model. The possibility of cross-cultural exchange & understanding is extremely limited.

The IDEALS of the Olympics. Those were cast aside when it went from an amateur athletic event to a professional sporting, commercial, entertainment extravaganza.

The end all is the lack of foreign spectators will deny the children the ability to interact with people from around the world. Really? Exactly how does that work?

Not one of those cited reasons or reasonings offer a justification for The Olympics or the allowance for spectators from outside of Japan.

Runner3..... Giving free tickets to school children is exactly what usually happens to the many unused Olympic tickets. Especially the Para-Olympic events that generate little interest.

Well, although my personal reason for hoping the Olympics will be held successfully and with overseas spectators, is more of a matter of being stuck in a love life catch 22, I would suggest a trial period with an extremely limited and carefully selected number of foreigners.

Then at least there would be a chance (for Japanese officials) to evaluate the impact overseas visitors would have. And thereafter make a final decision that will at least not be 100% built on speculation.

I mean if the trial period would not go well, at least no one will ever be able to question the decision of a subsequent cancellation. If the trial period would indeed go well, then that's something concrete to ease worries among the Japanese general public.

Absolutely not.

I'm only interested in a normal Olympics, nothing else.

Yes, if you gather to watch some ‘64 tapes.

""NO""

Give the tickets to school age kids for free.