Even with uncertainty over the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, Japan is moving at full speed — with the opening ceremony barely a month away — as it prepares to host the world’s largest sporting event during a global pandemic.
Athletes have been training under extraordinary circumstances, and organizers have been debating everything from a last-minute decision to allow domestic spectators to dealing with the tickets they’ve already sold. The broader population remains divided over letting the games go ahead, with many fearful they could turn into a super-spreader event.
Inside Tokyo 2020 Olympic Village
Still, organizers are implementing a variety of measures to prevent such an outcome, from regular testing to physical barriers to help social distancing. Here’s a first look at some of the scenes that athletes flying in from across the globe will be seeing once they land in Japan’s capital for what may be the competition of their lives.
A security officer closes a gate to the Olympic and Paralympic Village. Operations will begin on July 7, with the village opening its doors to athletes six days later. Japan’s population was largely against holding the games this year, according to local polls, but that stance shifted somewhat in recent weeks as the country’s vaccination drive sped up.
Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg
A communal area inside a residential unit in the village. Athletes will be asked to wear a face mask at all times except when eating, drinking, training, competing or sleeping.
Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg
The Olympic Village residential buildings include 3,800 units, each of which can house two to eight athletes. Due to a one-year delay, the area has remained a ghost town until now. Once the games come to a close, the village will be converted into a residential area for the local population.
Source: Tokyo 2020
To make the games more eco-friendly, the village has 18,000 cardboard beds topped with recyclable mattresses. Blackout curtains have been fitted to help the jet-lagged athletes sleep.
Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg
A bathroom inside a residential unit for athletes. Olympians will only be able to enter the village five days before they begin competing and must leave within 48 hours of finishing their events.
Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg
A view of the main dining hall from an athlete’s unit. Inside their rooms, athletes should be able to feel the sea breeze. For ventilation purposes, organizers have asked them to open the windows twice an hour.
Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg
The main dining hall was supposed to seat 4,300 people initially, but capacity was cut to 3,000 as part of Covid prevention measures. The ventilation system will completely replace the air inside the hall every 15 to 20 minutes.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Dishes from across Japan’s regions will be available on a rotating basis daily, but the menu will feature food from the Tohoku region every day to raise awareness about recovery efforts there following the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Athletes are given 30 minutes to eat their meals alone in seats that are sectioned off by clear acrylic boards. Organizers expect the hall to be busiest during breakfast, with day nine of the games potentially reaching peak capacity.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Hand sanitizer dispensers are at the entrance of the casual dining room in the multi-function complex. Organizers will provide classic Japanese foods, including rice balls, savory pancakes and skewers of meat, in the casual dining area.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Exercise equipment at the fitness center in the multi-function complex is separated by transparent screens.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
The Olympic Village is situated off Tokyo Bay in the southeastern part of the world’s most populous metropolis.
Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg
Toyota Motor Corp. will transport athletes using its autonomous e-Palette vehicles, which will operate every 5 to 20 minutes. Athletes won’t be able to leave the village beyond their competition events.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
The multi-function complex will provide a range of services to athletes, including medical care, casual dining, recreation booths and a fitness centre. After the games are over, the complex is set to be renovated as a commercial facility. Pictured: an augmented-reality photo spot at the complex’s recreation center.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
The media center in the Village Plaza. The International Olympic Committee has set a quota of 6,000 press accreditations for the Tokyo Games. Members of the media covering the event will have to adhere to rules, including testing, mask wearing and limiting physical interactions.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Temporary Covid medical facilities are in a separate building within the village. Patients with suspected virus cases will get medical attention and receive PCR tests behind glass walls.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
Athletes who receive a positive test result will be moved to an external quarantine hotel, pictured above, and will be hospitalized if in need of treatment. Each athlete will be required to take daily tests, meaning organizers will have to process up to 80,000 tests per day, including tests for others involved in the games.
Source: Tokyo 2020
