Tokyo Olympics: public opposition wanes, but doctors still worry Games will worsen Japan’s coronavirus crisis
- As Japan’s fourth wave of infections recedes, a new poll has found a majority of the public in favour of the Games going ahead as planned from July 23
- Medical professionals are concerned about new variants and a probable fifth spike in cases, however. Cancelling would cost Japan an estimated US$16.5 billion
Helping the organisers’ case was Ryota Yamagata’s new national record in the 100-metre sprint on Sunday, his time of 9.95 seconds at a meet in Tottori City bolstering hopes that a Japanese athlete might make the final – and even the podium – in what is widely seen as the Olympics’ blue-ribbon event.
A public-opinion poll conducted by the Yomiuri newspaper on Monday indicated that 50 per cent of the public now support the Games going ahead as scheduled from July 23, up from just 39 per cent one month ago. Some 24 per cent of respondents said the Games should go ahead with a limited number of spectators, while 26 per cent believed the best course of action would be to have the stadiums empty.
Combined, those figures eclipsed the 48 per cent who said the Olympics should be cancelled outright, down from 59 per cent in May.
“I strongly want the Games to go ahead as planned,” said Ken Kato, a Tokyo businessman. “Of course there are risks associated with an event like the Olympics during a pandemic, but I am confident that the really strict measures the government has put into place will mean they can go ahead safely.”
