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80 per cent of Japan doesn’t want the Tokyo Olympics to go ahead

The 2021 Tokyo Olympics is continuing to create controversy worldwide as the global pandemic shows no signs of slowing down.

A fourth spike in coronavirus infections in Japan has occurred less than 3 months before the Olympics are set to kick off.

This has sparked a heavy-weighted objection from the Tokyo Medical Practitioners Association, amongst thousands of other locals who are also opposed to the Games going ahead.

sugaImage: Kyodo News

The Association, comprised of 6,000 primary care doctors, has stressed that their ‘hands are full’ and ‘almost no spare capacity’ amid the surge in infections.

Specifically, Tokyo hospitals are suffering from a shortage of medical staff and hospital beds, with heat exhaustion posing a further threat of overcapacity for the summer months.

The International Olympic Committee has become the target of scrutiny, with a May 14 open letter to Prime Minister, Yoshihide Suga being put forward on Monday by the Association, urging for the Games’ cancellation.

Much of the Japanese government seems to agree with the motion, warning that if the Olympics contribute to a rise in deaths, then “Japan would bear the maximum responsibility”.

An online petition calling for the cancellation of the Games has gone out, with signatures from hundreds of thousands of people.

At the time of writing, more than 80 per cent of Japan oppose hosting the Olympics this year, with 40 per cent wanting postponement, and a further 43 per cent wanting a cancellation.

This is a significant jump from last month, which saw 34 per cent backing postponement and 35 per cent wanting a cancellation.

Japan has also come under fire for its sluggish vaccine rollout, with only 3.5 per cent of the population being vaccinated out of 126 million residents.

So far, the Games are progressing but under tight protocols, including an athletics test event in early May that featured 420 participants.

Multiple pre-Olympic training camps have also been cancelled amid concerns over the pandemic.

Canadian equestrian athlete and gold medalist Eric Lamaze is one of many athletes to have withdrawn from this year’s Games, citing “health concerns”, and later adding, rather frankly, that “it’s not the time to celebrate”.

However, Suga is adamant that Japan can host a “safe and secure Olympics” while following appropriate COVID-19 containment measures.

What do you think? Are the 2021 Olympics worth saving (alongside the population), or is it time for Tokyo to hang the towel?