Separate hotel for Covid+ athletes

TOKYO • The Tokyo Olympic organisers plan to prepare 300 hotel rooms for athletes who test positive for Covid-19 at the Games but show no or minor symptoms of the virus, Kyodo news agency said yesterday.

The Japanese government is placing Tokyo under a month-long state of "quasi-emergency" from today to combat surging infections, less than a month after a broader state of emergency - the second of its kind - was lifted for the capital and its surrounding areas.

The 2020 Games organising committee plans to reserve an entire hotel located a few kilometres away from the athletes' village in the Harumi district, which will likely cost several million dollars, Kyodo said, citing several unnamed sources.

Coronavirus-positive participants who do not require hospitalisation will be quarantined in the rooms for 10 days in principle, and medical staff will treat them around the clock, the report added.

The committee will also prepare about 30 special vehicles to transport the patients to the hotel.

Athletes will undergo Covid-19 tests every four days - at least under rules unveiled in February for the Tokyo Games, which are scheduled to begin on July 23 after a one-year delay due to the pandemic.

More guidance on isolation and testing is to come later this month.

Japan has recorded more than 500,000 infections and nearly 9,400 deaths, public broadcaster NHK said on Saturday, low compared to most other major economies.

However, concerns about the new wave of infections, propelled by mutant variants, are rising ahead of the Games.

REUTERS