Latest - One of Japan's sporting legends and an executive of the country's Olympic committee said the Tokyo Games should be held without spectators to ensure the safety of the public and accused the organisers of using a "double standard".
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) board member Kaori Yamaguchi, an Olympic judo medallist, said the government was "confusing" the people by asking them to stay at home and imposing curbs while putting on the global sports showpiece.
Polls have shown most Japanese oppose holding the Games this year, worried about a slow vaccination rollout and the flood of athletes and officials from overseas. Japan has effectively been closed to foreign visitors since the pandemic broke out.
"There's this fear inside everyone that if people start moving around Japan again, the infections would spread right at the time when they have peaked out and people can live safe lives again," said Yamaguchi, one of the few lone voices openly critical of the Olympics in the world of Japanese sports.
"If we were to limit the virus and be careful about it, I'd say we should hold the Games without spectators," Yamaguchi told Reuters in a Zoom interview.
Already postponed from last year because of the pandemic, a scaled-down version of the Games with no foreign spectators is set to start on July 23 despite public fears it could drain medical resources and spread the coronavirus as Japan appears to have contained the fourth wave of infections.
The decision on the domestic spectators -- and whether to lift the state of emergency in Tokyo and several other areas -- is expected later this month.
-Reuters
It's 'go time' for Federer with favoured grasscourt season about to begin
Roger Federer says he has seen "improvement and no setbacks" since returning to the Tour in March after over a year out due to two knee operations and with his grasscourt season kicking off in Halle next week, it's "go time".
Federer initially eyed a return at this year's Australian Open a year after exiting the 2020 Grand Slam at the semi-final stage, but slow progress in his recovery delayed his comeback.
He played his first match back at the Qatar Open but said he was targeting full fitness for the grasscourt season and wants to reach his peak by Wimbledon, where he has won eight of his 20 Grand Slam titles.
"I probably would have taken the place I am today," the 39-year-old, who pulled out from the French Open last week to protect his body after a gruelling third-round win, told reporters on Friday.
"March was still very early days for my comeback but I just felt like it was a good time to come back. I thought that Doha actually went extremely well overall because I know my expectations were close to zero over there. So I'm happy I was able to play two competitive matches over there.
Since pulling out of Roland Garros, Federer had his first hit on Thursday at the ATP 500 event at the German city of Halle, where he has won 10 titles.
-Reuters
Nearly two thirds of Brazilians oppose hosting Copa America amid pandemic - poll
Nearly two thirds of Brazilians oppose the country hosting the upcoming Copa America soccer tournament, a poll showed on Friday, amid concerns over the country's dire COVID-19 outbreak.
The South American Football Confederation last week unexpectedly relocated the tournament, which kicks off on Sunday, with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's backing.
Brazil stepped up after co-hosts Colombia were dropped because of civil unrest and Argentina withdrew after a surge in coronavirus infections.
Bolsonaro has played down the severity of the pandemic and fought against lockdowns to control an outbreak that has killed more than 480,000 Brazilians. Public health experts, Supreme Court justices and footballers questioned the wisdom of hosting the tournament with a pandemic raging, while high-profile sponsors have pulled out.
According to an XP/Ipespe poll, 64% of respondents were against hosting the cup, while 29% were in favor. Among Bolsonaro's critics, 83% were against the tournament in Brazil, while 35% of his supporters also did not support the competition.
Ahead of next year's elections, former leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva appears to be strengthening his lead over Bolsonaro, the poll showed. Although neither men have announced their candidacy, the 2022 election is widely expected to be a run-off between the two polarizing figures.
In the first round vote, Lula saw his share rise to 32%, up three percentage points from a May poll. Bolsonaro's first-round support slipped one percentage point to 28%. In a simulated second-round matchup, Lula's support rose to 45% from 42% in the previous survey, while Bolsonaro's fell to 36% from 40%.
The poll was based on 1,000 interviews, conducted from June 7-10, with a margin of error of 3.2 percentage points.
-Reuters