ORGANIZERS FOR THE delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics have proposed more than 50 measures to make the games “fit for a post-corona world,” including ways to reduce staff and cut costs.
The measures were proposed by the IOC Coordination Commission at a virtual news conference Friday between the International Olympic Committee and Tokyo 2020 officials.
Initial measures to be taken in an effort to reduce the number of people at the games include hosting pre-games meetings virtually, streamlining transportation services, adjusting spectator activities at competition venues and limiting stakeholder personnel attending the games.
Additional measures include reducing invitations for the opening and closing ceremonies, not holding team welcoming ceremonies at the Olympic village, shortening the opening time of training venues, and permitting fewer officials to access to official bus services.
“We owe it to the public to enact these measures during these challenging times, that’s why we’ve left no stone unturned and will continue to look for further opportunities over the coming months,” Tokyo 2020 Coordination Commission Chairman John Coates said.
“The unique task of reorganizing an Olympic Games has called for the Olympic Movement to be stronger together – this milestone illustrates our collective commitment,” he continued. “The ‘Tokyo Model’ will not only deliver games fit for a post-corona world, but it will also become a blueprint that will benefit future organizing committees for many years to come.”
Additional countermeasures in areas of travel, social distancing, personal protective equipment, food and testing, tracing and isolating are also being agreed upon.
The Tokyo Games were originally scheduled for July 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they were postponed until July 2021. Japan has more than 81,000 cases of the coronavirus, with more than 24,850 cases in Tokyo. More than 1,540 people have died across the country.
Globally, health officials report more than 32.26 million cases and more than 983,720 deaths.
