Tokyo Olympics officially open amid mass protests
By: Mourad Hajj
Today, Friday, the start of the Olympic Games was given in the Japanese capital, Tokyo, by holding the official opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, in the presence of the Emperor of Japan, Naruhito, and several sports and political figures, such as the President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Jill Biden, Ms. The first of the United States of America, the wife of US President Joe Biden.
It is the first time in the history of the modern Olympics; the opening ceremony was held to record the attendance of the masses due to the Coronavirus pandemic, as will also be the case during the Olympic competitions.
Before the artistic performances and the review of the delegations of participating countries, the official opening of the Tokyo Olympics witnessed a minute of silence for the victims of the Corona pandemic that has struck the world since December 2019, which caused the collapse of the global economy and the cancellation or postponement of many international events. Among them is the Olympic Games themselves, scheduled for the summer of the last year 2020. The date has been changed to the current summer, where the competitions will continue until August 08.
The most famous scene at the opening ceremony was the drawing of the Olympic logo and the globe in the sky of Tokyo by drones, with the participation of 1,800 aircraft.
Coinciding with the opening ceremony, Tokyo witnessed protests against the holding of the Olympic Games, as dozens of people, surrounded by police, gathered, carrying banners bearing the phrases "Put out the Olympic flame" and "No Olympics," and a banner saying that the Olympics "a crime" international against Japan.
Loud protests also took place in the vicinity of the Olympic Stadium, which was audible inside the stadium when the sound of artistic performances at the opening ceremony was low.
These protests came against the backdrop of fear of an exacerbation of the Corona pandemic in Japan, especially in the capital, Tokyo, which is currently experiencing a health emergency, in light of increase the number of daily infections with the virus, as a new case was recorded on Thursday, July 22, 1979.
As of Friday, the number of cases infected with corona among the delegations participating in the Olympics reached 110 cases, including 56 Japanese and 54 foreigners.
The "Tokyo 2020 Olympics" will witness the participation of about 11,000 athletes representing 205 countries, in addition to the refugee team.
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