Bay Area Olympic athlete, coach react to travel advisory to Japan
SAN JOSE, Calif. - The U.S. State Department is warning U.S. citizens against travel to Japan because of rising COVID-19 infection rates. It comes two months before Tokyo is set to host the Summer Olympics.
The guidance does not mention the Olympics, which was postponed last year due to the pandemic.
The Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo are set to begin July 23. For San Jose native Nikhil Kumar on the U.S. Table Tennis Team, training has been nonstop.
"I’m training about two to three hours a day at my club in Santa Clara, California," said Kumar.
It’s his first time competing in the Olympics. The games are facing another obstacle. The U.S. State Department issued a Level 4: Do Not Travel advisory for Japan. It’s the highest cautionary level.
"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity," said Kumar. "It’s already been postponed once. I really don’t want to miss this. I would regret it very much if I wouldn’t be able to play in this tournament."
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Japan has seen an uptick in COVID-19 cases. It’s been steadily increasing since the State of Emergency was lifted back in March. Vaccine rollout has been slow. Only two percent of Japanese citizens have gotten one shot of the vaccine.
On Monday, Tokyo’s Sumo Stadium was turned into a mass vaccination center hoping to accelerate inoculation.
"I’m definitely worried about the athletes," said Teresa, resident of San Francisco. "I know they are trying to come up with a plan to keep athletes safe."
The CDC issued its own travel warning that even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants. If you must travel to Japan, they advise to be fully vaccinated. Travel is limited.
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"All our team has been vaccinated so we are all clear in terms of that," said Greg Massialas, coach of the U.S. Men’s Foil Fencing Team Coach. "When we get to Tokyo we will be in a small bubble within a bubble."
Massialas is the coach for the U.S. foil fencing team, number one in the world. They are training right now in Colorado Springs. He thinks the games will be a go because too much has been invested and too much is at stake.
"We will hardly see any Japanese people at least person to person because we will be so isolated," said Massialas.
"Is it a business decision or really is it in the best interest of the athletes?" said Teresa of San Francisco.
Fans from outside Japan are barred to attend. There has been mounting pressure to postpone the games. Despite that pressure, the International Olympic Committee president has said the games will be safe- and they’ve managed the risks well so far.
Azenith Smith is a reporter for KTVU. Email Azenith at azenith.smith@fox.com and follow her on Twitter and Instagram @AzenithKTVU or Facebook or ktvu.com.