Tokyo Olympics: coronavirus largely contained among athletes, as cases surge in Japan

Only 24 athletes are among the 276 Covid-19 cases linked to the 2020 Olympic Games, while the broader Tokyo population has seen a surge in cases

Elsewhere, Australian troops hit Sydney’s streets to help enforce its prolonged lockdown and virus hotspot Indonesia said its wave is subsiding

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Commuters wearing face masks arrive at Shinagawa Station in Tokyo on Monday morning. While there are relatively few cases among athletes, infections are surging among the broader Tokyo population. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:48pm, 2 Aug 2021Updated: 11:11pm, 2 Aug 2021

Tokyo is experiencing a record surge in Covid-19 cases during the Olympic Games as the more infectious Delta variant rips through Japan, though contagion among those linked to the event appears to be relatively contained so far.

To date, organisers have announced 276 positive cases among people connected to the Olympics, including 24 athletes out of the more than 11,000 who are expected to participate. Of over 400,000 tests conducted so far on athletes and stakeholders, the positivity rate has been only 0.02 per cent, organisers said on Monday.

“There is a separation between the athletes and the various stakeholders, and the general population,” Mark Adams, International Olympic Committee spokesperson, told reporters. “You can’t reduce the risk to zero, but we have with the playbooks pretty well covered the ability to reduce that risk as far as we can.”

The so-called playbooks set out Covid-prevention measures and rules for each Olympics participant including athletes, officials and media.

Breaking down the category of people with positive test results, the largest numbers are among Tokyo 2020 contractors – third-party personnel who are contracted to the Games to provide various services – and Games-concerned people, who include those affiliated with the IOC, National Olympic Committees and Olympic Broadcasting Services. There have been a cumulative 144 and 83 cases in those categories, respectively.

While athletes in the Olympic Village are required to test daily, requirements are less strict for volunteers who have less contact with athletes. The rules are also harsher for those flying in from overseas, compared to Japanese residents.