Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa said Friday that Japan had not been consulted by the IOC about the Chinese vaccines, and that Japanese athletes would not take them. She said the vaccines have not been approved for use in Japan.
Stars and Stripes is making stories on the coronavirus pandemic available free of charge. See more staff and wire stories here. Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter here. Please support our journalism with a subscription. Japan will not take part in China’s offer — accepted by the International Olympic Committee — to provide vaccines for « participants » in the postponed Tokyo Games and next year’s Beijing Winter Games. Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa said Friday that Japan had not been consulted by the IOC about the Chinese vaccines, and that Japanese athletes would not take them. She said the vaccines have not been approved for use in Japan. « We have been taking comprehensive anti-infectious disease measures for the Tokyo Games in order to allow participation without vaccinations, » Marukawa said. « There is no change to our principle of not making vaccinations a prerequisite. » Announced by IOC President Thomas Bach on Thursday, the surprise deal comes as China faces mounting international pressure over the internment of at least 1 million Muslim Uyghurs, which has been labeled a « genocide » by several governments and human rights bodies.
