Tokyo 2020 to decide on Olympic spectator limits by end of April

Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said on Monday that she will decide the upper limit of spectators for the Olympics and Paralympics by the end of April.

''As for the upper limit of spectators, we will decide in that regard by the end of April. To flexibly address the virus situation including the state of emergency, we will work closely with the IOC, IPC, the central government, and the Tokyo metropolitan government to gain consensus,'' said Hashimoto during Tokyo 2020 executive board meeting held in the capital. Hashimoto noted that she was highly aware of concern about the virus resurgence as the state of emergency has been issued in Tokyo and three other prefectures but will have anti-virus measures that address all the possible issues that may be caused by holding the games amid the pandemic. ''The state of emergency has been issued in four prefectures including Tokyo. I'm aware that this is a challenging situation, but we have been gearing up for various measures, expecting all possible situations.'' The government declared the third state of emergency on Sunday to curb a rapid coronavirus resurgence as well as to stop people from traveling and spreading the virus during Japan's ''Golden Week'' holidays. The emergency alert is scheduled to be lifted on May 11 - around a week before IOC president Bach's visit to Japan.

''I was surprised how fast the time flies as there are less than 100 days (till the Olympics). There are still many obstacles we need to get over with including the virus. I won't waste a day to prepare to hold a safe and secure Olympics,'' Hashimoto said.