Olympics torch run’s running on empty.
Olympics flame taken through empty park as Covid-19 cases rise
TOKYO: The torch relay for the Tokyo Olympics ran through a mostly empty Osaka city park, showing the risks of trying to hold the postponed games during a pandemic.
It came on the same day that new coronavirus cases reportedly hit 1,000 for the first time in Japan’s second largest metropolitan area yesterday.
The torch relay began three weeks ago in northeastern Japan, attempting to navigate around the pandemic with a total of 10,000 runners crisscrossing the country and bound for the opening ceremony on July 23 in Tokyo.
Osaka, which announced plans last week to take the relay off city streets and bar the public, became the first detour since the relay began. Organisers warned beforehand there may be more.
Today’s second leg in Osaka – the day the Tokyo countdown clock hits 100 day to go – will be in the same park under the same closed-doors conditions.
New Covid-19 cases are rising across Japan, where fewer than 1% of residents have been vaccinated in very slow rollout.
Japan has attributed about 9,500 deaths to Covid-19, far fewer than many countries but higher than most neighbours in Asia.
Osaka, Tokyo and other parts of Japan have declared “quasi-emergency” conditions until early May with bars and restaurants being asked to close by 8pm.
Many runners arrived in Osaka’s Expo ‘70 Commemorative Park by bus and ran short legs carrying the torch alongside metal barriers or in empty park space.
They were accompanied by security officials who jogged or walked alongside, and followed by an escort” or “promotional” vehicle festooned with logos of major Olympic sponsors Coca-Cola and Toyota.
After the postponement a year ago, organisers talked of doing away with the relay to save money.
That idea never gained traction, largely because it’s promoted by some of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) largest sponsors.
The top sponsors paid the IOC US$1bil (RM4.13bil) in the last full Olympic cycle (2013-2016). That number could double when the next cycle is completed with the postponed Tokyo Games.