- ARAB NEWS
- 26 Apr 2024
Since 1975
TOKYO: Japan on Friday decided to put off the 75th National Sports Festival, originally slated for October in Kagoshima Prefecture, marking the first postponement of the annual event that began in 1946.
A similar decision was made for the 20th annual national para-sports festival, originally set to start also in the southwestern prefecture following the National Sports Festival, known as Kokutai.
The decisions were reached among the Japan Sport Association, the Japanese Para-Sports Association, the Kagoshima prefectural government and the Japan Sports Agency.
The two events usually bring together about 800,000 people, including spectators, in total.
The organizations reached the conclusion because it is difficult to reduce coronavirus infection risks sufficiently and hold qualifying events properly across the country, officials said.
JIJI Press
