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Tag 2020 Olympics

  • Mar, Wed, 2020
Sport

Japan says not preparing for postponement of Olympic Games

Preparation
Tokyo, March 18, 2020 (Reuters/NAN) Japan is not making any preparations to postpone the 2020 Olympics, the government’s top spokesman said on Wednesday in Tokyo.

The statement underlined Tokyo’s resolve to host the event as scheduled, in spite of the global spread of coronavirus.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said government would continue with preparations to hold the July 24 to Aug. 9 Games as scheduled, working closely with organisations such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

“We’re not making any adjustments to postpone the Games,” Suga told parliament when asked by a lawmaker whether the government was making plans to cancel or postpone the event.

His comments come amid mounting concerns about whether the Games can proceed as planned.

The rapidly spreading virus has sent panic into the financial markets and brought business and social activity around the world to a standstill.

Many sports events have been cancelled or postponed.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Tuesday that Group of Seven leaders had agreed to support a “complete” Olympics.

But he dodged questions about whether any of the leaders had brought up the possibility of postponement.

The IOC has remained committed to staging the Tokyo Games as planned, saying on Tuesday after a meeting with international sports federations that measures against the virus were delivering results.

Tokyo 2020 organisers on Wednesday repeated that the Games were on as planned.

“Yesterday, we spoke to the IOC (executive) committee and we confirmed that we will have the Olympics and Paralympics as planned,” Toshiro Muto, chief executive of the organising committee told a briefing in Tokyo.

“That decision has been agreed upon with all international federations.”

But the IOC is facing growing voices of dissent from top athletes worried about their health.

The new coronavirus has so far killed more than 8,200 people and infected over 200,000 worldwide.

A plane sporting Tokyo 2020 livery left Japan to collect the Olympic flame from Athens without a high-level delegation onboard, reflecting the disruption the virus is causing to preparations for the Games.

Most Japanese firms trust the Tokyo Games will go ahead as planned, a Reuters poll found.

But two-thirds are already bracing for the domestic economy to contract by at least one percent if the epidemic triggers a cancellation.

The Asahi Shimbun newspaper reported that Olympics tickets might not be refundable, leading to successful applicants taking to social media with fears they might be left out of pocket.

Even if Japan can contain the coronavirus outbreak, the Summer Olympic Games “would not make sense” if other countries cannot send their athletes, Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso said on Wednesday.

“As the prime minister said, it’s desirable to hold the Olympics in an environment where everyone feels safe and happy. But that’s not something Japan alone can decide,” Aso, who is also Japan’s finance minister, told parliament.(Reuters/NAN)
ERO/OLAL
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(Edited by Emmanuel Okara and Olawale Alabi)

  • Mar, Thu, 2020
Sport

NTTF has lived up to Nigerians’ expectations ahead of 2020 Olympics, table tennis umpire says  

Olympics
By Millicent Ifeanyichukwu
Lagos, March 5, 2020 (NAN) John Peters, a Nigerian table tennis umpire, says the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) has lived up to expectations ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Peters told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos that it was gratifying that three of NTTF athletes have qualified to represent the country at the Summer Olympics.

NAN reports that Funke Oshonaike, Offiong Edem and Olajide Omotayo secured qualification tickets at the just-ended Africa Qualifications Tournament in Tunis, Tunisia from Feb. 27 to Feb. 29.

“It was a very pleasant outing for the players and a great achievement for the NTTF to confirm that its sport’s shortlist towards the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was not a fluke.

“I am not only happy but feel proud to belong to the table tennis family. These players have performed well by qualifying for the Games,” Peters said.

The umpire applauded the Ishaku Tikon-led NTTF board for its work and commitment in the preparation stages of the Olympic qualifiers, saying this greatly contributed to the players’ successful outing.

He pointed out that the performances of Oshonaike and Edem at the qualifiers indicated that the Nigerian women were coming up in the sport as earlier yearned for by the federation.

“The team did well. But I must declare that the female ones are improving a great deal and I am particularly impressed because of the oppression from Egypt players.

“It is a proof that when issues that are stake are very weighty, we can count on them. Oshonaike in spite of not being fortunate at the African Cup is determined to set an African record.

“Today, she is the first African female athlete to feature seven times at the Olympics in table tennis and even in any other sport which is a very proud performance.

“Edem is another force to reckon with. She has represented Nigeria in continental games, the 2004 and 2012 Olympics and now she will be at Tokyo 2020,’’ Peters added.

He described Omotayo as a shining star who has proven that he will go places.

Omotayo has won the African Games men’s singles title at the continental tournament held in Rabat, Morocco in 2019.

Peters, however, expressed optimism that Quadri Aruna, the ITTF 18th-ranked player who pulled out of the qualification tournament due to injury, would be considered based on his outstanding record.

“Omotayo as a young player started well and has been doing well. He also proved this last year at the African Games. So, we have high hopes on him that he will deliver.

“I am very sure that, normally, Aruna would have qualified. But unfortunately he could not continue due to sudden injury during the third stage of the group matches,’’ he said.(NAN)
MIL/CHIN/OLAL
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(Edited by Chinyere Bassey and Olawale Alabi)

  • Feb, Wed, 2020
Sport

NOC partners Authorised Ticket Reseller on Tokyo 2020 ticketing

Ticketing
Abuja, Feb. 26, 2020 (NAN) President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), Habu Gumel, says the Committee has gone into partnership with Kingdom Sports Group as its Authorised Tickets Reseller (ATR) for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Gumel, who stated this in Abuja on Wednesday, said the partnership was necessary in order to ensure that Nigerians who wish to travel for the Games encountered no hassles.

“We met with the Minister of Youths and Sports Development and other ministry officials yesterday (Tuesday) and discussed what’s best for Nigerians in terms of processing tickets for the games,” he said.

Gumel said it was therefore necessary for the NOC and the ATR to provide adequate information to the Nigerian public on how to go about booking their tickets for Tokyo 2020.

Managing Director of Kingdom Sports Group, Daniel Baniston, said he was in Nigeria to ensure that Nigerians travelling for the Games were fully aware of the packages available through his company.

He said it was important for the company to explain the complexities involved in the ticketing programme for the Olympics.

“Previously within major sports events, people may have purchased their tickets from incorrect or illegal sources and as a result they won’t get entry into the stadium or secure entry visas.

“It is therefore important for the message to go out that tickets can only be purchased through official sources.

“Part of the rules and regulations for Tokyo 2020 is that the ticketing programme is heavily controlled by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Tokyo 2020 Local Olympic Committee,” Baniston said.

Kingdom Sports Group, an IOC and Tokyo 2020 LOC-accredited ATR which has been involved in 11 Olympic Games, was licensed to provide ticketing services for 36 countries, including Nigeria.

Baniston said Tokyo 2020 was destined to be the biggest sports event the world has ever seen, and that the organisers were currently facing challenges of unprecedented demand for tickets.

“When Japan opened up the applications, there was 92 per cent of Japanese nationals alone who wanted to get tickets to the Games but couldn’t.

“Internationally, there are 20 times larger demands for Tokyo 2020 tickets than there were for London 2012. It goes to show how popular the Olympics have become,” he said.

Baniston said his company’s job was to ensure that as many Nigerians who want to make the trip to Tokyo secure Games tickets to cheer their athletes and have a memorable experience.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that tickets packages are categorised into Three-Star, Four-Star, Five-Star and Five-Star Plus accommodation and event tickets across multiple categories.

Kingdom Sports Group will in March launch the final phase of their ticketing programme to provide the greatest access possible to as many clients as possible in 36 countries.

Baniston said his company has over 2,500 different types of tickets available for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

NAN also reports that hoarded and resold tickets have now been prohibited by the IOC and Tokyo 2020 LOC, and such tickets would be cancelled and entry visas denied their holders.

Baniston however acknowledged that one of the challenges would-be travelers to the Games might face was that of procurement of visas from the Japanese Embassy.

“Although, holding events tickets does not guarantee visa issuance, our company has concluded plans to assist Nigerians planning to travel for the Games with letters of introduction to the Japanese Embassy.’’

He advised intending travelers to have pre-application conversation with officials of the embassy to be in good stead for visa issuance.

Asked if many Nigerians had shown interest in travelling for the Tokyo Olympics, Gumel said he was optimistic that an appreciable number of Nigerians would like to be at the Games .

He said the NOC painstakingly chose Kingdom Sports Group as its exclusive ATR to ease the stress of Nigerians, considering that tickets for Tokyo 2020 have already been over-subscribed.

The NOC president urged interested Nigerians to visit www.kingdomsg.com to choose ticketing and travelling options which best suit their interests.

NAN reports that 11,091 athletes are expected to participate in 339 events across 33 sports at the Tokyo 2020 Games between July 24 and Aug. 9.(NAN)
KIA/OLAL
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)