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Many people in Japan are unhappy that their nation is hosting the Olympics with the coronavirus pandemic still ongoing, and that resulted in protests taking place outside the Opening Ceremony on Friday.
The Opening Ceremony for the Olympic Games was held at the National Stadium in Tokyo on Friday evening. Outside the stadium, hundreds of people gathered for a march during which they chanted things like, “Go to hell, Olympics!” You can see some videos below.
“Go to hell, IOC,” “go to hell, Olympics” with 30 minutes to go until the opening ceremony pic.twitter.com/A4SmV3s9JF
— Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) July 23, 2021
Very big protest outside the National Stadium ahead of the Olympic Opening Ceremony. Significant police presence. Protesters chanting pic.twitter.com/hywevLRtDG
— Henry Bushnell (@HenryBushnell) July 23, 2021
The protesters held flags and signs that featured messages blaming the IOC and Tokyo officials for potentially contributing to the spread of COVID-19. The signs featured messages such as “Lives Over Olympics.”
However, there were also many people who looked like they wished they could have been inside the largely vacant National Stadium. Hundreds of other people gathered to see if they could catch a glimpse of the Opening Ceremony.
Crowd outside gasping watching fireworks from outside the stadium. Fireworks reflected on the building outside the stadium pic.twitter.com/KUxSmIUbZg
— Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) July 23, 2021
Events at the Tokyo Olympics are being held without spectators, which has been a polarizing issue. Some high-profile athletes have had to withdraw due to COVID-19 protocols.
More must-reads:
- Eddy Alvarez, Sue Bird lead Team USA as flag-bearers in Opening Ceremony
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