The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations on Thursday said Japan should be "proud" of having overcome "great adversity" to stage the Tokyo Olympics amid the coronavirus pandemic in remarks ahead of her arrival to attend the Games' closing ceremony later in the week.
"I think the people of Japan, you should be proud and you have so much to be proud of as the host and the host of such a large-scale international event like the Olympics and the Paralympic Games," Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a teleconference with Japanese media outlets.
The envoy will represent the United States at the closing ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. The Summer Games' opening ceremony on July 23 was attended by first lady Jill Biden.