Tokyo unveils Olympic Village

TOKYO • Tokyo 2020 organisers threw open the doors of the Olympic Village to the media yesterday, showcasing upgrades designed to counter Covid-19, including a fever clinic, just over a month before the Games begin on July 23.

Organisers are in the home stretch of preparations before the Games' opening ceremony, and are trying to build confidence that the global event will be safe for athletes and the Japanese public.

As the dedicated virus clinic was unveiled, they warned that drinking in groups would be prohibited while a mixed zone for guests has been scrapped.

Warning posters that caution residents to take anti-virus measures including ensuring room ventilation have been placed throughout the mini-city, which can host 18,000 athletes and team members during the Olympics and 8,000 during the Paralympics.

The fever clinic, separate from the main medical facility, will be used to test and isolate suspected infected patients or those considered close contacts.

"If there is suspicion of being infected... we should be able to properly isolate this person," said Takashi Kitajima, general manager of the village. "This is just another example of how we are stringently managing matters about possible Covid infections."

Other measures include reduced seating for diners and plexiglass shields between gym equipment, while a kit of hand sanitisers and soap will be given out to residents.

Organisers were originally planning to feed residents in vast dining halls - the largest with a capacity of 4,500, but athletes have now been asked to dine alone, maintain social distancing, and wipe down surfaces after meals.

A handful of protesters stood outside chanting against the Olympics with the village set to be transformed into thousands of luxury bayside condos after the Games.

Around 900 of the units - some carrying a price tag of 170 million yen (S$2.1 million) - were sold before Tokyo 2020 was pushed back by a year.

Built on reclaimed land looking over Tokyo Bay, the village has been empty except for construction workers since the event was postponed in March last year.

Opening in just over a fortnight, it will be particularly important for athletes this Games because they are barred from going anywhere else except to training and competition venues.

Under strict virus rules, athletes will be tested daily and required to wear masks except during competition, eating and sleeping. There will be no partying.

"When you drink alcohol, in principle, you are requested to drink alone," said Kitajima.

Competitors can enter the village only shortly before their event and must leave within 48 hours of being eliminated or their competition ending.

Conditions may not be the most luxurious, with single rooms of 9 sq m and doubles of 12 sq m, while the beds are made from recyclable cardboard, yet tough enough to stand up to even weightlifters.

However, the timber-laced shopping area, which draws on Japanese minimalist design, features automatic teller machines, dry cleaners, a post office, a bank and a courier counter.

There are also plans to make aesthetic improvements, with Yoshie Ogawa, a director at the Tokyo 2020 marketing bureau, saying: "Where you can see bare light bulbs, we'll install lanterns to give the area a bit more of a traditional Japanese feel."

The 2.4 billion yen shopping area was made from 40,000 pieces of timber donated by 63 Japanese municipal governments. After the Games, it will be dismantled and the timber returned to the donating cities for re-use.

Officials expect most of those staying in the village will have been vaccinated, but the rules apply regardless of inoculation status, and athletes could be kicked out if they fail to comply.

The countermeasures are set to make for a Games like no other, with overseas fans already banned and a decision on domestic spectators expected today, even as some emergency medical officers continue to call for a complete ban.

Dr Shoji Yokobori, who chairs the Nippon Medical School Hospital's department of emergency and critical care medicine and is the medical officer for the weightlifting venue, said: "The 'no spectator' scenario is better than other options. We may still have a severe pandemic this summer.

"The number of people in the audience is my biggest concern. I'm hoping there won't be so many spectators."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS