Public enthusiasm for next year’s Olympic Games is waning in Tokyo, as many in Japan believe Covid-19 infections will ‘flare up’ if it pushes ahead.
Justic McCurry writes from Tokyo that this Wednesday the reset Olympic countdown clock will show there are 365 days to go until the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Games. But with a year left to finalise arrangements, the prospects for a traditional Olympic spectacle in the city are looking grim.
Even if Japan, which has seen a comparatively low number of infections and deaths, could contain the outbreak, the virus is expected to rampage through the US, Brazil, India and other parts of the world.
The host city itself is in the grip of a spike in Covid-19 infections, with authorities reporting 290 new cases on Saturday. With 9,223 cases, Tokyo now accounts for more than a third of Japan’s total.
The Tokyo 2020 organising committee is now talking of a pared-down games that would reduce costs and ensure the safety of 11,000 athletes vying for a record 339 medals.
For now, no one connected with the Tokyo Games is prepared to deviate from the official line – that the opening ceremony at the new Olympic stadium will take place on 23 July 2021.
The tally of active cases of the new coronavirus in the Czech Republic has risen to 4,764, above the previous high of 4,737 seen in April, health ministry data showed on Sunday.
On Saturday 113 new cases were identified, bringing the total since the beginning of March when first cases were found to 13,885.
The central European country of 10.7 million has had 358 deaths from the Covid-19 disease caused by the coronavirus, far fewer than many western European nations, Reuters reported.
The rise in active cases has grown as daily infections held above 100 in the past days, outpacing the number of recoveries. The new cases – many in the country’s industrial north-east where a mine outbreak occurred – have so far been milder than before.
The number of people in hospitals was 135 on Saturday, less than a third of the peak of 446 in April and far below capacities of the national health system as presented by the government.
Pressure on hospitals is among criteria the government uses when deciding on response.
Since lifting a strict nationwide lockdown imposed in March, the authorities have pledged to avoid future countrywide measures and instead respond to local outbreaks regionally.
Leading Scottish scientists have backed the nation’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, over her handling of Covid-19 – amid suggestions that contrasting government responses in London and Edinburgh may be helping the cause of Scottish independence.
The pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) government’s drive to achieve “total elimination” of the coronavirus differs from England’s bid merely to suppress its spread and, overall, Sturgeon’s approach is seen as more cautious than UK prime minister Boris Johnson’s.
She resisted dropping the “stay at home” message for a period after it was abandoned in England, and decided to make masks compulsory in shops earlier than Johnson’s government did. In addition, Scotland has operated stricter rules about eating in public and easing social distancing compared with England.
Although Scotland’s total number of deaths is above 4,000 and is higher than many countries with similar populations, new cases and deaths are now at very low levels, allowing the SNP to aim for an elimination strategy. For several consecutive days this month there were no deaths from Covid-19.
UK infection rate ‘basically flat’, says head of Office of National Statistics
Updated
at 4.01am EDT
Amid all the pessimism associated with the pandemic, Greece has sought to inject the mood with a note of optimism holding a concert in support of key workers in Athens’ stunning Roman agora.
In a recital given by the celebrated mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili – performing pro-bono alongside the Greek National Opera- epidemiologists, healthcare workers and the scientific committee that has advised the country’s government were honoured for expertise that is believed to have saved thousands of lives.
Attending the event, the Greek culture minister Lina Mendoni described the tribute as one of “high symbolism after the pandemic.”
“With tonight’s premiere,” she said, “we honour all the scientists, members of the Special Committees and healthcare workers, who through unique investment of their knowledge, experience, time, pain and efforts, played a crucial role in tackling the unprecedented health crisis.”
Televised globally to enhance the GNO’s artistic outreach, the recital kicks off a bonanza of cultural events, including 70 new productions, at 120 archaeological sites this summer.
In a country that has managed to keep infection rates below 4,000 and the death toll at 194, seating was socially distanced and mask wearing was mandatory as attendees entered and exited the magnificent site for the concert.
Since reopening to tourism on July 1stepidemiologists have expressed concern over the significant rise in coronavirus cases witnessed in the country.
This is Ben Quinn in London picking up liveblog coverage of global Covid-19 developments as the World Health Organisation reports a record daily increase in global coronavirus cases for second day in a row.
In other developments, European Union leaders have extended their first face to face summit into Sunday after two days of failing to overcome differences over how to respond in a co-ordinated way to the need to revive their coronavirus-hammered economies.
In the US, coronavirus deaths are nearing 140,000 as one of the world’s worst outbreak worsens.
Here in London, Boris Johnson has played down the prospect of a second national coronavirus lockdown, saying he did not want to use it any more than Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.
A spat between the UK and Russia continues to rumble on with Russia’s ambassador to the UK rejecting claims that his country’s intelligence services tried to steal details of research into coronavirus vaccines.
I’ll be bringing you coverage of the latest from all of the above stories and other developments around the world. I’m on Twitter at @BenQuinn75.
Feel free also to email if you’d like to flag up any news stories that we are missing from around the world.
Updated
at 3.25am EDT
That’s it from me, Helen Sullivan for today. Thanks for following along – my colleague Ben Quinn will be taking you through the news for the next few hours.
A quick note to say my dog Bones has just been dropped off at the airport in Beirut, Lebanon as he starts a long journey home to Australia. Here he is in less apocalyptic times – wish him Bones voyage!
Helen Sullivan
(@helenrsullivan)thinking about the time my dog thought these cats were happy to see him pic.twitter.com/bZSimVFAFo
In Czech Republic, tally of active cases of the new coronavirus has risen to 4,764, above the previous high of 4,737 seen in April, health ministry data showed on Sunday.
On Saturday 113 new cases were identified, bringing the total since the beginning of March when first cases were found to 13,885.
Reuters reports that the country of 10.7 million has had 358 deaths , far fewer than many western European nations.
But the rise in active cases has grown as daily infections held above 100 in the past days, outpacing the number of recoveries. The new cases – many in the country’s industrial north-east where a mine outbreak occurred – have so far been milder than before.
The number of people in hospitals was 135 on Saturday, less than a third of the peak of 446 in April and far below capacities of the national health system as presented by the government. Pressure on hospitals is among criteria the government uses when deciding on response.
Since lifting a strict nationwide lockdown imposed in March, the authorities have pledged to avoid future countrywide measures and instead respond to local outbreaks regionally.
On Friday, authorities tightened coronavirus restrictions in the northeast of the country after a spike in cases in several locations, reinstating compulsory face coverings, limiting restaurant opening hours and ordering checks on cross-border commuters.
Concerns that the wearing of masks could become a new front in a political “culture war” have been eased after evidence emerged that a clear majority of the public back their use in shops and supermarkets.
An Opinium poll for the Observer reveals that 71% of adults in England support making masks mandatory in shops, with only 13% opposed to the move. Support was consistent across parties and age groups. Almost two-thirds of UK adults (64%) said they believed masks were an effective way to contain the spread of Covid-19.
There is also wide acceptance that the value of masks is to protect other people. Most people (54%) say masks are worn mainly to prevent the person wearing it accidentally infecting others, while 30% say they are needed to protect others and prevent others infecting them. Just 8% believe masks are mainly to protect the person wearing them.
