Party poopers, athletes should go, no party

Tokyo was supposed to host the Games this year but due to COVID-19 things have been pushed back for 12 months. There will be many social distancing and hygiene restrictions, and those who take center stage have been given a hammer blow on their Olympic experiences.

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Instead of hanging around in the athletes’ village after their own events are over, athletes are encouraged to leave as soon as possible.

Of course, the competition is tough, but the Games are also one big party where the athletes drop their hair once their job is done and mingle with friends and foes.

Not next year, says John Coates, president of the International Olympic Committee. The athletes are not allowed to stay in the village for the duration of the games after their event has ended.

“The athletes will have a day, two days after their competition is over and then go home,” he said at a briefing this week.

“A longer stay in the village increases the potential for problems.

“We have to make sure the Olympic Village is … the safest place in Tokyo.

“The athletes have to be able to trust it.”

This means that the wild stories of years gone by in Tokyo are likely to be missing.

As AP reported during the 2016 Rio Olympics, life in the village can change dramatically once the battle for medals is over.

“It’s an interesting dichotomy in the athletes’ village … while many there are still trying to keep a sharp focus, others are in vacation mode,” the publication reported.

In 2012, ESPN’s Sam Alipour quoted numerous Olympians – like American target shooter Josh Lakatos – spilling the beans on the sex and partying that athletes have when their events are over.

“Lakatos didn’t want to go. He knew from his experience four years ago in Atlanta (1996), where he had won silver, that the Olympic Village was about to have a loud party and that there was no way he would miss it, ”Alipour wrote.

Recalling the 2000 Sydney Games, Lakatos said, “Swear by God the entire women’s 4×100 relay team from a Scandinavian-looking country leaves the house, followed by boys on our side. And I’m just saying, “Holy crap, we saw these girls running the night before.”

Stories like this will be hard to come by when athletes are forced to leave the village sooner than ever. Perhaps the huge supply of condoms that accompanies every Olympiad will also be shortened next year.

Tokyo’s opening ceremony will also be a different matter. Only athletes and a maximum of six officials from each country are allowed to march, reducing the size of many delegations.

But will the new rules work? Andrew Parsons, President of the International Paralympic Committee, is convinced of it.

“I’m absolutely sure that people are sticking to the rules and respecting the guidelines,” said Parsons.

“Every stakeholder involved in the Olympic and Paralympic Games understands the meaning.”

VIRUS VACCINE NOT MANDATORY

Athletes don’t have to take a coronavirus vaccine to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, said IOC chief Thomas Bach, adding that mandatory shots would “go too far”.

Bach, who is in Tokyo to build confidence in the event postponed by the pandemic, said taking a vaccine was a “free choice” for athletes and others involved in the Games.

“There are too many problems to consider. This is a private health issue, ”said the President of the International Olympic Committee during a tour of the Olympic Village.

“It’s also about the health of each individual. It’s a matter of availability. “

However, the IOC will “appeal” to athletes and others to vaccinate, added Bach, calling it a “mark of respect” for other participants and the Japanese hosts.

Bach and Japan organizers expressed confidence that the event will continue, buoyed by recent positive vaccine trials and a successful international gymnastics event in Tokyo this month.

Bach said the organizing committee will “take all necessary precautions so that athletes can relax and feel safe”.

On Monday, he said the IOC will try to help athletes secure shots when they are available and approved.

Australian Health Secretary Greg Hunt said Tuesday the IOC had reassured him “they have moved to secure vaccines for all athletes and officials from around the world”.

“So we’re assuming there will be vaccines for all athletes from all nations and all officials from all nations, and they’ll really be ready long before the Olympics.”

With AFP