10:38 (IST)
Is Olympic torch relay happening?
Yes, it is.
Despite persistent concerns about the safety of holding the Games this summer, organisers say the massive event can go ahead and the torch relay will kick off as planned on 25 March.
Spectators will be allowed to line the route when the Olympic flame begins its delayed relay across Japan next month, organisers said on 25 February, but cheering will be strictly banned.
The torch relay was scrapped just days before it was due to kick off last year when Japanese and Olympic officials took the unprecedented decision to postpone Tokyo 2020 over the coronavirus pandemic.
READ MORE: Fans allowed to attend torch relay with masks, social distancing, and no cheering
03:20 (IST)
Will Indian athletes be vaccinated before they fly out for Tokyo?
Yes! India's sports minister Kiren Rijuju has said earlier this month that all Indian athletes who will compete at Tokyo 2020 will be vaccinated before leaving the country.
On the same day, sports secretary Ravi Mittal said that athletes headed to Tokyo will receive vaccination before the Games. “They will all be vaccinated before they go for the Olympics, whoever goes. We will also take into account the time between two doses and everything else,” said Mittal.
The Indian Olympic Association has also written to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, requesting him to consider vaccinating the Tokyo Olympics-bound athletes on a priority basis to give them sufficient time before leaving for the Games.
READ MORE: With or without COVID-19 vaccine, India’s top athletes ready for Games
02:46 (IST)
Will athletes travelling to Tokyo for the Olympics/Paralympics be required to be vaccinated?
No! IOC President Thomas Bach has said that it will not be mandatory for athletes travelling to Tokyo for the Games to be vaccinated. In fact, none of the scenarios the IOC and Tokyo 2020 organisers have considered in planning for the deferred Games involve vaccines being widely available.
Bach has also spoken out against athletes jumping to the head of the queue for vaccines. He has said that IOC was of the opinion that the first priority for vaccines should be doctors and medical professionals, high-risk groups, ‘people in need’, and those ‘keeping our societies alive’.
READ MORE: 'Are elite athletes a priority?': Sports face vaccine dilemma ahead of Tokyo Olympics, Euros
01:35 (IST)
What can athletes expect the new normal to be at the Olympics and Paralympics?
No socialising, no handshakes and definitely no hugs — that's what athletes at the coronavirus -postponed Tokyo Olympics can expect this summer, according to a virus rulebook released on Tuesday by organisers.
The 33-page document — the last in a series of "playbooks" drawn up in a bid to ensure the Games can go ahead safely — also warns athletes they could be kicked out of their events if they break strict anti-virus rules, as per a report by Agence France-Presse.
Under the guidelines, athletes will be tested for the virus at least once every four days, and will be barred from competing if they return a confirmed positive test.
Their time in Japan will be "minimised to reduce the risk of infection," and those staying at the Olympic Village will be expected to "avoid unnecessary forms of physical contact."
READ MORE: Tokyo Olympics 2020: No hugs or high-fives, organisers tell athletes in playbook
01:28 (IST)
Welcome to our liveblog in the build-up to the Tokyo Olympics. 150 days are all that remain before the deferred Tokyo Olympics will begin with a muted Opening Ceremony in the capital of Japan.
These Olympics promise to be unlike any other. Tokyo 2020 was postponed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Even after several vaccines have arrived on the horizon, the shadow of the virus will loom over the Games.
This liveblog will help you keep track of the latest development as an unprecedented Games appear on the horizon.
In January this month, US Olympic and Paralympic Committee chief executive officer Sarah Hirshland wrote a letter to Team USA athletes preparing for Tokyo Olympics.
“Our expectation today is that the Games will go forward,” Hirshland wrote. “They will look and feel different than any previous Games, as we will all be asked to continue to make sacrifices and adaptations to protect the health of our community.”
As the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics grow larger on the horizon, adaptation and sacrifice will become the motto for an Olympics and Paralympics like no other.
Deferred by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, which brought all sporting action to a grinding halt for over half a year in 2020, the Olympics will start with a muted Opening Ceremony on 23 July.
With just 150 days left on the clock for the Games, there are as many questions as answers. Will international fans be allowed? How frequently will athletes be tested? What happens when an athlete tests positive?
The IOC and Tokyo 2020 organisers have sought to clarify some doubts and allay fears about a cancellation The IOC and Tokyo 2020 organisers have tried to answer some of these questions, and allay fears of cancellation of the Games, by releasing four ‘Playbooks’ for different stakeholders of the Games. Two more versions of the Playbooks are expected, which will break down in minutiae what athletes, fans, National Olympic Committees and Federations can expect.
As of now, the Playbooks suggest that athletes will be asked to come to Tokyo only five days before their events, and leave within 48 hours of their events ending. Other measures will prohibit athletes from socialising, shaking hands or hugging others. Under the guidelines, athletes will be tested for the virus at least once every four days, and will be barred from competing if they return a confirmed positive test.
Meanwhile, fans, should they be allowed in arenas, will be asked not to cheer loudly, and stay masked at all times when in arenas.
from Firstpost Sports Latest News https://ift.tt/3sr2wko
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