Tokyo 2020: Fukushima and Hokkaido also ban Olympic spectators

The prefectures will hold their baseball and softball events, and football matches, without spectators, respectively.

Tokyo had earlier barred all fans from venues in the city and three neighbouring prefectures.

Two more prefectures — Fukushima and Hokkaido — outside the immediate Tokyo area have decided to bar fans from attending Olympic events because of rising coronavirus infections, Tokyo Olympic organisers confirmed with the pandemic-delayed games opening in just under two weeks.

Tokyo organisers and the (International Olympic Committee) IOC, earlier in the week, barred all fans from venues in Tokyo and three neighbouring prefectures.

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Now, two prefectures that were permitted to have fans have backed out of those plans.

Fukushima prefecture in northeastern Japan has decided to hold its baseball and softball events without spectators.

It has been joined by the northern prefecture of Hokkaido, which will hold football games without fans at the Sapporo Dome.