Tokyo Games: Only 40 Canadians at the Opening Ceremony

Tokyo | Canada will only have a group of 30-40 athletes on Friday to attend the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics.

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Several factors explain this special situation in this period of the pandemic and the health restrictions in a city where the number of cases has peaked in recent days. Head of Sports at the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), Eric Miles presents the organization’s perspective.

“Due to the Olympic Village access rules outlined in the Tokyo 2020 procedure books, athletes will arrive at the village only five days before the start of their events,” he explained in a statement sent to the media. This means that there are fewer athletes in the village and most of them are about to get involved.”

safety first

“Team Canada maintains its focus on safety and performance and adheres to the letter and spirit of the Tokyo 2020 Games Handbook documents,” said Miles. For all of these reasons, Canada expects approximately 30 to 40 athletes to participate in the opening ceremony of the Parade of Nations. Canadians will be proud to see the athletes marching behind flagbearers Miranda Ayim and Nathan Hirayama who will represent the 370 members of the Canadian Olympic team in Tokyo 2020. Despite enormous challenges last year, this Canadian Olympic team is the most imposing Canadian team since the Los Angeles Games of 1984.”

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