The total number of foreign athletes, officials and related personnel who will come to Japan for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games will be less than half the initially planned 200,000, a number of government sources have revealed.
The government, the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the International Olympic Committee and other entities now estimate that the number coming from overseas for the Olympics will be around 69,000 -- 15,000 athletes, 10,000 coaches and managers, and 43,000 accredited personnel such as IOC staff and media.
The number for the Paralympics is estimated at about 25,000, comprising 10,000 athletes and coaches and 15,000 accredited staff.
The government asked the IOC to drastically reduce the number of Games-related personnel coming from overseas to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Initial plans called for more than 200,000 people to come.
"We particularly made efforts to reduce the number of people from the IOC and sponsors," a senior official of the Tokyo organizing committee said.
-- Foreign VIPs asked to refrain from meeting athletes
The government will request that foreign dignitaries coming for Olympics and Paralympics to refrain from meeting their country's athletes, according to government measures revealed on Wednesday.
The measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus were presented by the Foreign Ministry at a joint meeting of Liberal Democratic Party's Foreign Affairs Division and other groups.
Among the measures, foreign dignitaries will also be requested to submit an itinerary of their activities in Japan, to refrain from using public transportation in principle, and to give careful consideration in visiting regional areas.
The visiting VIPs will also be asked to take a coronavirus test prior to departure from their country and upon arrival in Japan, as well as appoint a person in charge of virus-related issues so that it is clear who is responsible if someone from their country is found infected.
Under the condition that the dignitaries comply with these requests, the government plans to waive the 14-day self-quarantine requirement upon entry.
The government has requested that contingents of dignitary and staff be limited to a total of 12 for heads of the state or government, and up to five for sports ministers and other cabinet-level officials. According to the Foreign Ministry, some dignitaries have already decided to forgo their visits because of these measures.
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