Olympics-2021: is there a chance to qualify for it and how to do it?

Olympics-2021: is there a chance to qualify for it and how to do it?

Japanese authorities are ready to host fans, but everything depends on several factors.

On November 16, Thomas Bach, the head of the International Olympic Committee, and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga agreed that the Olympics-2021 will not be postponed again. Japan’s prime minister assures that the celebration of sport will be a symbol of solidarity in the post-Coronavirus era. But will fans be able to attend the Olympics? Although the Japanese authorities answer this question in the affirmative, what will be the organization of the process is still unclear.

Vaccine supply

Summer Olympics organizers say the top priority will be to ensure the safety of participants. Thomas Bach hopes to have a coronavirus vaccine available to everyone by the summer of 2021. The plan is to vaccinate athletes back home so that the people of Japan feel safe.

The head of the Olympic Committee did not rule out the possibility of vaccinating fans who plan to come to Japan. However, the official emphasized that it would not be mandatory. No certificates of vaccination will be required to enter the country.

Will fans get into the Olympics?

The Japanese Olympic Committee is still unsure whether fans will be able to attend the Olympics. And it’s all because of the requirement of the local governments that the sports federations depend on. For example, in Italy, Spain and England, soccer matches are now held without spectators. In Germany, fans are allowed into the stadiums, but the percentage of the stands’ occupancy is determined differently by local authorities. In Russia, the situation is also different: in the Moscow region spectators are not allowed to attend competitions. In Moscow and St. Petersburg arenas are allowed to be filled only 25% full.

In Japan, soccer championships are held. Recently, an international championship in gymnastics was held in Tokyo. The competition was held with a limited number of spectators. However, at the 2021 Olympics, the organizers want to achieve maximum attendance. The reason is money flow, because the Olympics always entails a large influx of tourists.

Entry conditions

The Japanese government wants to exempt foreign athletes and spectators from having to sit through a two-week quarantine. However, the secretary general of the organizing committee of Tokyo-2021 specified: “Only athletes, spectators and tourists from countries with a favorable epidemiological situation will be exempted from this”. This information was confirmed by the Prime Minister of Japan. Thomas Bach notes that it is too early to draw conclusions, as it is not clear what the situation with the coronavirus will be next year. However, he praises the actions of the Japanese authorities in holding international competitions: “It is perfectly safe to hold sporting events here even under the current conditions… We are convinced that in the future we will have even more measures against coronavirus in our arsenal.”

Some media outlets have published information that fans will need to install an app on their phones to attend the Olympics. It will store information about personal data and a negative coronavirus test. However, there has been no confirmation of such a measure from the Japanese government or the IOC yet.

It is not yet certain that spectators will be able to attend the Tokyo Olympics. Japanese citizens already have the right to surrender tickets to the event and return the money spent. The possibility for Russian fans to attend the event will depend not only on the decision of the IOC and the Japanese government, but also on the epidemiological situation in Russia.