Tokyo Olympics: COVID-19 staff cluster in Games hotel hosting Brazilian delegation

A COVID-19 cluster has been detected at a Japanese hotel where dozens of Brazilian Olympic team members are staying, officials said on Wednesday (July 14), raising concerns of COVID-19 infections spreading between locals and Olympic staff and athletes. Seven staff at the hotel in the city of Hamamatsu, southwest of Tokyo, have tested positive, said a city official, but the 31 members of the Brazilian Olympic delegation, which includes judo athletes, are in an ‘bubble’ inside the hotel separated from other guests and have not been infected.

The cases were found during a routine screening process required before the staff started work, said city official Yoshinobu Sawada, adding the unidentified hotel was now considered a COVID-19 cluster. Medical experts are worried that Olympics ‘bubbles’, imposed by Tokyo 2020 Olympic officials in an effort to ensure a COVID-19 free Games, might not be completely tight as movement of staff servicing the Games can create opportunities for infections.

The pandemic-hit Olympics, due to start in nine days, have lost public support amid lingering concerns over infection risks and a state of emergency being declared in Tokyo, despite organisers promising strict coronavirus measures. Many Olympic delegations are already in Japan ahead of the Games, some of them are training in local towns. Several athletes have tested positive upon their arrival.

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