The 121-day relay, set to touch Osaka in mid-April, is seen as the first major test of Games organisers’ ability to hold a large event under strict coronavirus curbs. It features 10,000 runners carrying the torch through 47 prefectures.

“We can’t have the Olympic torch relay take place on the public roads of Osaka city,” Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura told reporters, adding that the talks with organisers would be held on Friday evening.

“I’d like to discuss with the Tokyo 2020 organising committee whether there might be something we could do in place of the relay.”

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The organisers require roadside spectators to wear masks, observe social distancing and avoid cheering to limit spread of the virus, although there have been no reports of infections arising from the relay.