Overseas media to be strictly monitored at Tokyo Olympics

Overseas media personnel will be strictly monitored after entering Japan for the Olympic Games to ensure they have no contact with the public, Tokyo Olympic chief Seiko Hashimoto said here on Tuesday.

Hashimoto told an executive board meeting in the opening remarks that Japan is still in a "very difficult situation," and "to make sure that people don't go to places other than the places where they are registered to go, we will use GPS to strictly manage their behavior."

Media arriving from abroad need to submit pre-determined destinations during the games and with the use of GPS, they can be tracked by organizers to ensure they are isolated during the first 14 days after arrival.

"If any violations are found, measures like suspension or deprivation of accreditation or deportation proceedings will be applied," Toshiro Muto, the Tokyo 2020 CEO, told reporters after the executive board meeting.

"After 14 days, they can engage in normal media coverage," Muto said. "Considering the current situation, that is tolerable."

Hashimoto also urged foreign journalists to stay in one of around 150 designated hotels instead of rented residences or friends' homes.

Muto said that the 70,000 volunteers for the Olympic and Paralympic Games will be vaccinated and the organizers are also considering expanding the vaccination campaign to all people to work for the games.

He reiterated that each delegation member of the five South Asian countries of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, will have to be vaccinated before entering Japan.

India, the worst-hit country in the world because of new COVID-19 variants, confirmed 86,498 cases in the past 24 hours to make the country's total past 29 million on Tuesday, second only to the United States.

Muto denied reports that these five countries' delegations will be banned from attending the games.

"That's completely groundless," he said. "We have never heard about it. We cannot even consider that possibility."