The decision whether to allow overseas spectators to attend the Summer Games is up to Japan, says senior International Olympic Committee official John Coates.
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Coates, who is also president of the Australian Olympic Committee, said on Thursday it was up to the host nation to decide on what to do about fans in venues.
The comments came after Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said she wanted to reach a decision on foreign spectators by the start of the torch relay on March 25. Olympics Minister Tamayo Marukawa said the government would decide by the month-end.
"I will let the government make a decision on that. I think they'll talk about foreign spectators later this month," John Coates, head of the IOC's coordination committee for the Games, told Japanese broadcaster TBS.
Marukawa has also said the government would decide on maximum capacity for domestic spectators in April, ahead of the Games' July 23 start.
The Mainichi newspaper and other domestic media have said the government planned to bar overseas spectators over concerns they would spread the coronavirus, which led to the postponement of the Games from the originally scheduled date last year.
Opinion polls have shown most Japanese oppose holding the Games this year during the pandemic.
The Olympics are scheduled for July 23 to August 8 and the Paralympics from August 24 to September 5.
Australian Associated Press
