Over 30 Japanese Towns Cancel Plans To Host Foreign Olympics Athletes - Reports

Over 30 Japanese Towns Cancel Plans to Host Foreign Olympics Athletes - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th May, 2021) Thirty-one Japanese municipalities have abandoned their plans to host foreign athletes for training camps and cultural exchanges before the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, the Kyodo news agency reported on Wednesday.

In addition to a lack of staff needed to work in host towns, many foreign teams have simply withdrawn for various reasons.

Chiba prefecture, for example, was supposed to welcome some 120 members of the United States' athletics federation in July, but was told on April 14 that athletes would not train in its three cities due to safety risks.

The city of Ono, situated in the Fukui prefecture in central Japan, has canceled its hosting program for a delegation from East Timor.

The prefecture will also not see the UK wheelchair basketball team and members of the Russian fencing team training on its soil, the outlet specified.

Overall, as of late April, 528 Japanese municipalities have applied for hosting programs to welcome teams from 184 countries worldwide.

The Summer Olympics in Tokyo, initially scheduled for 2020, were postponed for a year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. The games take place this summer, from July 23 to August 8. It is supposed to feature the largest number of athletic disciplines, 33, as well as categories, 339.