TOKYO: Some 10,000 of the 80,000 volunteers secured for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer have withdrawn, organizing committee Director-General Toshiro Muto said Wednesday.

The committee did not ask why they quit, but the reasons apparently include fears over novel coronavirus infections and changes in the situations after the start of fiscal 2021 in April, according to Muto.

He said that the withdrawals “will not particularly affect” the operations of the Tokyo Games because the events will not have spectators from overseas and there will be less work for volunteers.

The number of games volunteers who quit reached 1,000 in February, when then committee President Yoshiro Mori was criticized for sexist remarks and resigned. The number surged in spring, when Japan was seeing the fourth wave of coronavirus infections.

Muto also said that some 190,000 people in Japan are expected to attend the Olympics as organizing committee members, games staff, volunteers, reporters and others. For the Paralympics, the number is seen reaching some 110,000.

From overseas, a total of 78,000 people are expected to visit Japan for the games, excluding athletes.

Muto sounded negative about the idea of easing coronavirus restrictions during the games for those already vaccinated, saying that such treatment would be “unequal.”

JIJI Press