How the pandemic Olympics affected Japan

Let the Games begin

In the end, there were no spectators across the 43 venues, as a state of emergency—Tokyo’s fourth, which began on 12 July—was extended to the end of August (it has since been widened to apply to 21 of Japan’s 47 prefectures). Among the restrictions in place, dining establishments were not permitted to serve alcohol and were expected to shut by 8 pm, with businesses fearing the economic effects during what should have been a bumper period for custom.

On the day of the opening ceremony of the Games, Japan recorded 4200 new infections. By the closing ceremony that figure had tripled to 12 073.

A total of 151 people affiliated to the Olympics tested positive during the two weeks of the Games; they were immediately isolated and sent for treatment. Some high profile protocol breaks occurred: two judo athletes from Georgia were ejected from the event and stripped of accreditation after going sightseeing.9 Olympic athletes and affiliated officials were told to adhere to the “playbook,” which suggested restricted activities for the first 14 days after entering Japan.

More recently, it emerged that one woman associated with the Olympics was infected with the lambda strain of covid-19 when she entered Japan in July,10 the first known case in the country according to one government official.10

Japan’s minister for the Olympics and Paralympics, Tamayo Marukawa, maintains that the Olympics hasn’t affected covid-19. “I don’t think the Olympics caused infections to spread,”11 he said at a press conference.

But Kenji Shibuya, director of the covid vaccination medical centre in Soma city, said that although the Games had no direct effect on local transmission, it brought about a sentiment of celebration and excitement. “It is summertime, and people are tired of repeated states of emergency. And then the Olympics came in, and obviously there was a flow of movement,” said Shibuya.

“Within the Olympics village, people were tested almost daily and almost everyone was vaccinated. Outside the bubble, the situation was completely the opposite. So there is a clear double standard here,” Shibuya added.

Still, the public’s attitude softened somewhat as the Games began. Later surveys found the proportion wanting cancellation dwindling, and most supported the event going ahead in some form as a sense of inevitability set in. A survey after the Games ended showed 64% were glad it had taken place.12

Public patience was tested, however. Shortly after the Games ended, Bach was seen out walking through the city,13 causing a stir on social media since Tokyo residents had been asked to refrain from non-essential outings. One minister defended Bach’s actions by explaining that he had arrived in Japan on 8 July and had therefore passed the 14 day quarantine restriction. Athletes and other Olympic related workers were also spotted touring Tokyo’s popular Akihabara district after the Games ended.14

The Games continue

Japan’s pandemic situation remains perilous. New infections are currently over 25 000 a day nationally, and the state of emergency will last until at least 12 September.15 As the Paralympics began on 24 August, Tokyo broke its record for consecutive daily new infections (over 5400).16

“It is surprising that nobody was talking about whether the Paralympics would be cancelled,” says Shibuya, “Nobody wanted to touch upon it, and that is very irresponsible.”

Masataka Inokuchi, a vice chair of the Tokyo Medical Association, has declared the capital’s circumstance as “a disaster level emergency situation that is out of control,” worrying about the medical system and paramedic response.17 Tokyo’s metropolitan government has been trying to increase hospital capacity and had also prepared 6240 rooms across 16 empty hotels as temporary facilities for patients with mild or asymptomatic infection who need to isolate but don’t require hospital treatment.18 But then came another hurdle: a staff shortage meaning that only 1800 of those rooms could be used. As of 12 August, 1762 rooms were already occupied.

Additionally, around 60 000 people are already isolating in their homes across Tokyo and its neighbouring prefectures of Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama. Doctors have been forced to tell covid-19 patients—most of them in their 20s and 30s, and infected with the delta variant—to wait at home for an available hospital bed and that deteriorating health would still not guarantee a bed.19

Ambulances take hours to arrive, and Tokyo’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency says it struggled to find medical facilities willing to take in the 2897 callers they dealt with in just the first week of August.18 Of those, 48% were possibly infected with covid-19, according to the agency. It was the first time since the pandemic that calls had gone beyond 1000, it said.

The worsening situation forced Tokyo’s governor, Yuriko Koike, to shift her position from asking people to consider changing their travel plans during the traditional Obon holidays, to giving up their plans entirely.20 This drew ire from the public, since her office did not heed the appeals to cancel the Olympics. One survey reported that 61% of respondents believed the Olympics had lowered the temperament of caution against the virus.21

The federal government continues rushing to get more people vaccinated. By 24 August, Japan had administered nearly 120 million vaccine doses, and government statistics show 86.2% of over 65s are fully vaccinated, with 89% having had at least one dose.22 But figures from 10 August showed that only 12% of adults younger than 65 were fully vaccinated,23 the lowest vaccination rate among the G7 nations.

As the Paralympics goes ahead, again with no spectators, so far three athletes have tested positive and been sent for self-isolation.24 And the question of how much the Games may entwine with the new wave shows no sign of disappearing.