Japan is set to host the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics from the end of July, but how many Covid cases is the country currently seeing?
Organisers of the games recently announced that no spectators would be allowed in the stands to watch events due to a surge in infection rate around Japan.
The Delta variant, which is currently spreading around the country, has concerned Tokyo's leaders who do not want the games to catalyse yet another increase in cases.
But just how bad are Covid cases in Japan?
How many Covid cases are there in Japan?
According to the World Health Organisation's Covid-19 dashboard, as of July 9 2021, Japan has recorded 813,976 confirmed cases of Covid since the beginning of the pandemic.
As of the same date, the country had recorded 14,917 Covid related deaths.
Compared to other countries Japan has seen relatively low case numbers throughout the pandemic.
According to Reuters, infection rate across the past 7 days in the country is currently hovering around 9 per 100,000.
To put this in context, according to the same data, the case rate across the past 7 days in the UK is currently sitting around 281 per 100,000.
For the games to be held safely, experts say Tokyo must have a daily test rate of less that 100.
At the moment, the city's daily average infection rate over the past seven days stands at 663.6, as reported in Japan Today.
896 Covid cases were reported in Tokyo on July 8, however this number was a slight decrease from the day before, which could signify a decline in infection rate.
What did organisers of the games say about spectators?
A state of emergency in Japan will remain in place throughout the games.
As well as banning spectators, bars, restaurants and karaoke bars serving alcohol have been requested to close, and residents of the city are expected to be told to stay at home during the games.
Speaking on the decision to introduce the state of emergency, Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said: "Taking into consideration the effect of coronavirus variants and not to let the infections spread again to the rest of the nation, we need to strengthen our countermeasures".
Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said: "It is regrettable that we are delivering the Games in a very limited format, facing the spread of coronavirus infections.
"I am sorry to those who purchased tickets and everyone in local areas."
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