Pressure mounts to cancel Tokyo Olympics

The IOC, the body that runs the Olympic movement, is resisting calls to cancel the Tokyo Olympics, despite surging Covid-19 cases in Japan


New Covid-19 cases in Japan (7-day average)

Country in grip of fourth wave of virus*

May 12: 6,142

8,000 
6,000 
4,000 
2,000
0
	Feb 21, 2020	Jan 1, 2021	May 12


Public poll: Should Olympics go ahead?† 
65% No, cancel or postpone again
  

Public outcry at Olympic organisers who ask Japanese Nursing Association to volunteer 500 nurses to work at Tokyo Games, rather than focus on treating patients with Covid-19‡


IOC broadcast revenue from summer Olympic television rights fees
($millions)

Rome		1960 1.2
Tokyo 		1964 1.6
Mexico City 	1968 9.8
Munich 		1972 17.8
Montreal 	1976 34.9
Moscow 		1980 88.0
Los Angeles	1984 286.9
Seoul 		1988 402.6
Barcelona 	1992 636.1
Atlanta 	1996 898.3
Sydney 		2000 1,331.6
Athens 		2004 1,494.0
Beijing 	2008 1,739.0
London 		2012 2,569.0
Rio 		2016 2,868.0

Due to take place: Jul 21- Aug 8
  
 
Ironically, IOC President Thomas Bach has called off planned trip to Japan due to Covid-19 fears. He advocates continuation of Tokyo Olympics


*Less than 2% of Japan’s population (126m) has received at least one dose of vaccine. †Survey
of Japanese public by TBS News, May 8-9 (in one week, almost 350,000 people have signed petition to cancel Olympics). ‡Olympic officials say 10,000 medical workers will be needed during Games – meanwhile hospitals struggle to cope with surging Covid-19 cases. 


Sources: Reuters, Guardian, Washington Post, Council of Foreign Relations, Statista, Change.org 
Picture: AP 
© GRAPHIC NEWS