TOKYO (Reuters) – A large majority of Japanese said they were “interested in the Olympics”, while 58% said they did not want to be held out of fear of COVID-19, a report showed. Yomiuri daily opinion Wednesday.
In the survey, conducted between January 18 and February 25, 25, when much of the country remained in a coronavirus crisis, 30% of respondents said they were “very interested” in the Summer Games and 40% said they were “slightly interested”, for 70% combined.
But concerns about the impact on coronavirus infections were the main opposition to holding the event this year, although the 58% opposition is about 20 percentage points lower than earlier polls.
If the Games were going as planned, 91% of respondents said spectators should be kept to a minimum or not at all, Yomiuri’s poll showed.
The Tokyo Olympic Games were postponed last year due to the pandemic and rescheduled to hold it this year from July 23rd.
While Japan has low coronavirus infection rates compared to the United States and many European countries, the Tokyo metropolitan area remains in a state of emergency, with restrictions in place for spectator numbers for major sporting and cultural events. , as well as closing times for bars and restaurants. The country remains closed to non-resident foreigners.
A Reuters poll published last month showed that nearly two-thirds of Japanese companies are also opposed to holding the Games as planned, moving from a previous survey. showing the majority in favor.
To date Japan has confirmed 431,250 coronavirus cases and 7,931 deaths as of Monday. Local media reported late Tuesday that Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures were set to call on the government to extend a state of emergency about two weeks beyond the March 7 scheduled end.
Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim. Edited by Gerry Doyle