As the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics near, athletes, coaches and staff are starting to arrive in Japan amid still strong concerns about the risk of COVID-19 infections spreading during the sporting events.
In Japan, some municipalities are seeing a supply crunch of vaccines as vaccination rollout speeds up. Cases of new infection, meanwhile, are declining in some major cities but in the past few weeks, Tokyo is beginning to see a rebound.
The government announced Thursday that the capital will be under a state of emergency from Monday through Aug. 22, two days before the Paralympics will kick off. But it’s entirely possible for another wave to arrive before the opening ceremony, and the cooperation of the public is crucial in preventing that from happening.