Tokyo Olympic Games set to start in July without foreign fans: What you need to know

Picture courtesy: Latinitas

The Summer Olympics of Tokyo will have much less international flair to it than usual as part of the COVID-19 precautions Japan is taking.

The Tokyo Games are expected to kick off July 23, but Japan is blocking foreign fans from attending events, as reported by the Kyodo News agency on March 9, 2021.

An anonymous official said last week "in the current situation it is impossible to bring in foreign spectators and fans". The prohibition of foreigners had been certainly to the virulent COVID-19 virus that has infected more than 118 million people worldwide.

With fewer fans, the organizing committee has budgeted approximately $800 million from ticket sales - a shortfall to be made up by the Japanese government.