Eyes on Tokyo

President of the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA), Christopher Samuda, said the organisation is closely monitoring ongoing anti-Olympics protests in Japan and is paying attention to medical information coming out of the country, adding that this will help to guide their decision regarding Jamaica’s participation at the July 23 - August 8 Games set for Tokyo.

“The concern is general. Once there’s a pandemic, there has to be a genuine concern for the safety and well-being of the athletes, coaches and administrators, all that are attending. So we are watching with a very critical eye,” Samuda told The Gleaner.

“As we progress towards the Games, we will re-evaluate the situation, because we have the interests of our athletes at heart and we want to ensure they are not affected,” Samuda added.

“We haven’t made any decisions as yet and we continue to prepare for the Games, but we will keep a critical eye on the situation and we will be watching, especially, the medical information that comes out of Tokyo and the findings of the World Health Organization,” he shared.

Japanese citizens have strongly opposed the staging of the Games, given the current health crisis, with opinion polls showing the majority of locals wanting the Games cancelled or postponed again, after last year’s setback, while protests continue to gain momentum in the past few weeks.

WIN CONFIDENCE

Samuda noted that the Japanese government would have to win the confidence of the public and bring the situation under control.

“The government of Japan will have to monitor that situation, because they would not wish the protest to become larger to an extent where it starts to threaten the Games,” said Samuda. “So they will have to monitor it, as the opinion poll is against the staging of the Olympics; and if they are going to convince the public that it is going to be safe, they are going to have to take further measures to demonstrate that the system is in fact viable and that it will protect the athletes, coaches, administrators, and all.”

However, Samuda encouraged those preparing to participate in the Games or involved in qualification, to continue their preparations as planned.

“We want our athletes to continue preparing. Track and field makes up most of our delegation, and those athletes are preparing for the Games and they will go to national trials at the end of June. We are encouraging all athletes to continue their preparation,” Samuda stated.

Tokyo and other areas in Japan, the host country, are currently under a state of emergency, as cases in the Asian country continue to rise, with less than two per cent of the population being fully vaccinated.

In March, street protesters marched through the Shinjuku area in Tokyo and again in May outside of Tokyo’s National Stadium, with signs and banners depicting the phrase, “Just stop it”.

On Monday, an online petition campaign – called ‘Stop Tokyo Olympics’ – was drafted by well-known lawyer Kenji Utsu-nomiya.

The petition, which garnered more than 350,000 signatures calling for the Games to be cancelled, was submitted to local organisers, the International Olympic Committee, and other officials.

Japan has officially spent US$15.4 billion to organise the Olympics. The country has attributed approximately 11,000 deaths to COVID-19.

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com