Foreign athletes may be exempt from quarantine upon arrival to Olympic Games

Tokyo: Foreign athletes arriving to the Tokyo Olympic Games may have the opportunity to train from the first day of their arrival without having to go through a 14-day quarantine, Japanese newspaper Yomiuri reported citing sources familiar with the situation.

According to the news outlet, the Japanese government plans to allow all athletes arriving to the country to be exempt from the two-week isolation period. The athletes be subject to strict sanitary standards and have to test negative for COVID-19 twice - 96 hours before departure to Japan and then upon arrival. Accompanying persons such as coaches will also have to go through the same procedures.

The approval of this proposal is scheduled to take place on April 28 during an online meeting of the members of the organizing committee of the Games, the Tokyo government and members of the International Olympic Committee.

On Friday, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has declared a state of emergency for the prefectures of Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo from April 25 to May 11 due to the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases. As of April 24, Japan saw over 5,000 new cases.

The Tokyo Olympics were planned to be held from July 24 to August 9, 2020, but were postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be now held from July 23 to August 8, 2021. Initially, the Games aimed to host 10,000 - 12,000 athletes, but due to the pandemic, the number will be reduced. (UNI)