• Advertise
  • Opinion
  • Features & Interviews
  • Investigation
  • Contact
Tuesday, June 6, 2023
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Lagos Today
  • Home
  • News
    • Lagos News
    • National News
    • World News
  • Entertainment⚡ by CRAWL
    • All
    • Art & Design
    • Books
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Sports
    Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka visits Lagos

    Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka visits Lagos

    Eko Football: Fouad Oki elected Chairman LSFA

    Eko Football: Fouad Oki elected Chairman LSFA

    FIFA U-20: Nigeria defeats Italy

    FIFA U-20: Nigeria defeats Italy

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Seun Kuti: Magistrate dismisses application to arraign singer by Police

    Manchester City Win Premier League

    Manchester City Win Premier League

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Femi Kuti Speaks On Brother’s Arrest, Says ‘We’ve Got The Best Lawyer’

    Update: Kuti detained in Panti, Lagos

    Update: Kuti detained in Panti, Lagos

    Malik family emerge winners in Lagos Squash Classics

    Malik family emerge winners in Lagos Squash Classics

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    19 players compete for $12,000 at Squash Classics in Lagos today

    19 players compete for $12,000 at Squash Classics in Lagos today

  • Opinion
  • Business
  • Features & Interviews
  • Best Of Lagos
    Lagos welcomes The Art hotel: A flamboyant 5 star Business Boutique Hotel

    Lagos welcomes The Art hotel: A flamboyant 5 star Business Boutique Hotel

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA ANNOUNCES NEW MEMBER, AFFINITY ART GALLERY

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA ANNOUNCES NEW MEMBER, AFFINITY ART GALLERY

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA HOSTS MEMBERS’ NETWORKING FORUM

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA HOSTS MEMBERS’ NETWORKING FORUM

    Exploring Lagos’ Gastronomy With Chef Priyank Singh of Hard Rock Cafe

    Exploring Lagos’ Gastronomy With Chef Priyank Singh of Hard Rock Cafe

    Olu Oyinsan- Saying Yes To Founders At The Early Stage

    Olu Oyinsan- Saying Yes To Founders At The Early Stage

    A Rare Hobby: Sports Fishing In Lagos

    A Rare Hobby: Sports Fishing In Lagos

    Chef Nkesi- Experiencing Different Cultures Through Food

    Chef Nkesi- Experiencing Different Cultures Through Food

    Wumi Jubril: Creating Memorable Experiences

    Wumi Jubril: Creating Memorable Experiences

    Nordic hotel

    Nordic Hotel Makes Grand Debut in Lagos

  • Things To Do
  • Home
  • News
    • Lagos News
    • National News
    • World News
  • Entertainment⚡ by CRAWL
    • All
    • Art & Design
    • Books
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Sports
    Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka visits Lagos

    Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka visits Lagos

    Eko Football: Fouad Oki elected Chairman LSFA

    Eko Football: Fouad Oki elected Chairman LSFA

    FIFA U-20: Nigeria defeats Italy

    FIFA U-20: Nigeria defeats Italy

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Seun Kuti: Magistrate dismisses application to arraign singer by Police

    Manchester City Win Premier League

    Manchester City Win Premier League

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Femi Kuti Speaks On Brother’s Arrest, Says ‘We’ve Got The Best Lawyer’

    Update: Kuti detained in Panti, Lagos

    Update: Kuti detained in Panti, Lagos

    Malik family emerge winners in Lagos Squash Classics

    Malik family emerge winners in Lagos Squash Classics

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    Kuti turns self in over assault on Policeman 

    19 players compete for $12,000 at Squash Classics in Lagos today

    19 players compete for $12,000 at Squash Classics in Lagos today

  • Opinion
  • Business
  • Features & Interviews
  • Best Of Lagos
    Lagos welcomes The Art hotel: A flamboyant 5 star Business Boutique Hotel

    Lagos welcomes The Art hotel: A flamboyant 5 star Business Boutique Hotel

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA ANNOUNCES NEW MEMBER, AFFINITY ART GALLERY

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA ANNOUNCES NEW MEMBER, AFFINITY ART GALLERY

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA HOSTS MEMBERS’ NETWORKING FORUM

    THE LUXURY NETWORK NIGERIA HOSTS MEMBERS’ NETWORKING FORUM

    Exploring Lagos’ Gastronomy With Chef Priyank Singh of Hard Rock Cafe

    Exploring Lagos’ Gastronomy With Chef Priyank Singh of Hard Rock Cafe

    Olu Oyinsan- Saying Yes To Founders At The Early Stage

    Olu Oyinsan- Saying Yes To Founders At The Early Stage

    A Rare Hobby: Sports Fishing In Lagos

    A Rare Hobby: Sports Fishing In Lagos

    Chef Nkesi- Experiencing Different Cultures Through Food

    Chef Nkesi- Experiencing Different Cultures Through Food

    Wumi Jubril: Creating Memorable Experiences

    Wumi Jubril: Creating Memorable Experiences

    Nordic hotel

    Nordic Hotel Makes Grand Debut in Lagos

  • Things To Do
No Result
View All Result
The Lagos Today
No Result
View All Result
Home World News

Tokyo Olympics: A Games in a pandemic, new sports, British medal hopes and global stars to watch

by The Lagos Today
July 23, 2021
in World News
6 min read
0
0
Tokyo Olympics: A Games in a pandemic, new sports, British medal hopes and global stars to watch
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The Tokyo Olympic Games are upon us. They look and feel different to any other Games of times gone by, but they are here. At last.

With an unexpected additional year of preparation under their belts, more than 11,300 athletes from 207 nations will compete over the next couple of weeks, all vying to get their hands on the medal they’ve worked so long for.

When the Games were postponed in March 2020, organisers said the Olympic flame “could become the light at the end of the tunnel”. With the Covid-19 pandemic still raging worldwide, that metaphorical tunnel is still being traversed, but Friday’s opening ceremony offers a glimmer of that light.

“I think it will be a moment of joy and relief when entering the stadium, a moment of joy in particular for the athletes because I know how much they are longing for this moment,” said International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach.

“Then they can finally be there, they can enjoy this moment under very special circumstances.”

An Olympics in a pandemic

Masks, quarantine, saliva tests. Make no mistake, these are an Olympics like no other.

With Tokyo in a state of emergency throughout the Olympics after a spike in Covid-19 infections, the Games have come under huge criticism from the Japanese public, the majority of whom have said they want the Olympics to be cancelled or postponed again.

But safety is paramount for the organisers, and huge precautions are being taken, including holding the Games behind closed doors with no fans, from either Japan or overseas, being permitted inside venues.

As for the athletes, they are under strict restrictions too. They must wear a face mask at all times – except when eating, drinking, training, competing or sleeping – and minimise physical interaction with others, and are being tested for Covid-19 every day.

Adam Peaty poolside at Tokyo 2020 wearing a mask

But unfortunately the virus has affected the Games already, before they have officially started.

On Friday, 19 new cases of Covid-19 were reported, bringing the total of cases related to Games personnel to 106. There have been 11 positive cases among athletes in Tokyo.

Six Team GB athletes have had to isolate in their rooms after being identified as close contacts of someone on their flight who later tested positive for Covid-19.

US tennis player Coco Gauff had to pull out of her debut Games after testing positive before arriving in Tokyo, while Team GB’s Dan Evans and Johanna Konta and world number one shooter Amber Hill withdrew for the same reason.

What’s new?

There will be a record 339 medal events held across 33 sports, with five new sports – and 34 new events in total – added to the Tokyo 2020 programme by the IOC. Some 48.8% of athletes competing at the Tokyo Olympics are women – a record figure.

The five new sports are karate, skateboarding, sport climbing, baseball/softball and surfing. Baseball and softball technically aren’t ‘new’ sports on the Olympic programme, but they haven’t been contested at a Games since Beijing 2008.

New events have been introduced to the boxing, canoe slalom, canoe sprint, cycling, rowing and swimming programmes, while there are new mixed-gender events including a 4x100m mixed medley relay in swimming and a mixed relay in triathlon.

  • What’s new at Tokyo 2020?

These sports have been introduced in a bid to attract younger audiences and reflect “the trend of urbanisation of sport”.

IOC president Bach said: “We want to take sport to the youth. With the many options that young people have, we cannot expect anymore that they will come automatically to us. We have to go to them.”

This year’s Games are also doing their bit for sustainability. The medals are made from recycled mobile phones, while the Olympic torch was made from aluminium waste from temporary housing built in the aftermath of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.

Only eight new competition venues have been built from scratch, while much of the energy powering Tokyo 2020 comes from renewable sources.

In total, the Games will cost £11.5bn, up 22% because of the one-year delay.

British medal expectations

For the first time in 125 years, Team GB have chosen more female athletes than male to compete in an Olympics, with 201 of the 376 athletes originally selected being women. There will be British representation in 26 of the 33 Olympic sports in Tokyo.

Team GB won 65 medals at London 2012, increasing to 67 in Rio four years later. In Tokyo, UK Sport says it hopes between 45 and 70 medals will be won.

This has reduced from the ambition of between 54 and 92 medals that was set in 2018, taking into account the “extraordinary circumstances” presented to athletes and staff in the build-up to the Games.

But who will win those medals?

Swimmer Adam Peaty (100m breaststroke), gymnast Max Whitlock (pommel horse) and taekwondo star Jade Jones are tipped to retain their gold medals from Rio, with Jones – the 57kg winner in London and Rio – bidding to become the first British female athlete to win gold at three successive Olympic Games.

Track cyclists Jason and Laura Kenny both have the chance to become GB’s most successful Olympian – Jason is currently tied for the record with Sir Chris Hoy on six golds, while Laura is already Britain’s most successful female Olympian with four golds.

Sprinter Dina Asher-Smith is the face of the Games for Team GB and has medal chances in the 100m and 200m, while skateboarder Sky Brown, GB’s youngest Olympian at just 13, is a medal contender in the women’s park event.

Sailor Hannah Mills and rower Mohamed Sbihi will lead Team GB into Friday’s opening ceremony, with Tokyo being the first Olympics at which nations can select two flag bearers in a bid to increase gender equality.

Global stars to watch

Simone Biles training in front of Olympic rings

American gymnast Simone Biles was one of the standout stars in Rio five years ago.

The 24-year-old won four golds and one bronze at her debut Games and is set to compete in all five events again. If she defends her all-around title she would be the first Olympic gymnast to do so since 1968.

Two more Americans are expected to dominate in the swimming pool. Caeleb Dressel has ‘just’ the two Olympic golds so far but the 24-year-old is favourite to win up to six gold medals in Tokyo, while Katie Ledecky, who won four golds in Rio to add to her one from London 2012, is expected to compete in up to six events.

In the Olympic Stadium, look out for Jamaica’s six-time Olympic medal-winning sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce as well as Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis.

Serbia’s tennis world number one Novak Djokovic continues his pursuit of a Golden Grand Slam, having won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon titles this year, and needing the Olympic and US Open titles to complete the feat.

But arguably one of the most anticipated performances of the Tokyo Games will come from 43-year-old transgender weightlifter Laurel Hubbard.

New Zealand’s Hubbard, who broke male national records as a junior, will be the first trans athlete to compete at the Olympics in an individual event – the women’s 87kg category.

–BBC

Follow us on social media
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...
Tags: Tokyo OlympicsTokyo2021
Previous Post

Wildfires have erupted across the globe, scorching places that rarely burned before

Next Post

FG commences payment of benefits to deceased doctors

The Lagos Today

The Lagos Today

Related Posts

Lagos Constructs 300 Classrooms Across State Schools

Schools in Russia set to teach Yoruba, other African Languages

by Idonosan Debe
June 2, 2023
0

Starting this year, the Russian government will begin teaching three major African languages in a few Moscow schools as part...

WHO team blocked from entering China to study origins of coronavirus

After COVID, prepare for the next pandemic, WHO warns

by Idonosan Debe
May 24, 2023
0

Weeks after declaring an end to COVID-19 as a public health emergency of international concern, the World Health Organisation (WHO)...

Next Post
FG commences payment of benefits to deceased doctors

FG commences payment of benefits to deceased doctors

Please login to join discussion

Recommended

Covid-19: Reps Raise Concerns Over School Resumption Monday

House of Reps approve establishment of Federal Medical Centre in Ejigbo

8 months ago
Cameroon jails two transgender women for ‘attempted homosexuality’

Cameroon jails two transgender women for ‘attempted homosexuality’

2 years ago

Popular News

    Newsletter

    Connect with us

    Tags

    #EndSARS 2023 Elections 2023 polls 2023 Presidency Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) ACCIDENT Africa All progressives Congress APC Asiwaju Bola Tinubu Babajide Sanwo-Olu Bitcoin CBN Central Bank of NIgeria Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) China Coronavirus pandemic Covid-19 Covid-19 in Lagos Covid-19 in Nigeria Covid-19 Vaccine Cryptocurrency Donald Trump Drug Trafficking EFCC Federal Government Federal Government of Nigeria Fraud Gov. Sanwo-Olu Insecurity Lagos-Ibadan expressway Lagos state Lagos State Government Lagos State Police command Muhammadu Buhari Murder Naira NDLEA New naira notes Nigeria Rape Strike action UK United states US

    News

    • Business
    • National
    • Politics
    • Tech

    Opinion

    • Editorials
    • Today’s Opinion
    • Letters
    • Sunday Review
    • Advertise
    • Opinion
    • Features & Interviews
    • Investigation
    • Contact

    © 2020 The Lagos Today - Nkali.

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home
    • News
      • Lagos News
      • National News
      • World News
    • Entertainment
    • Opinion
    • Business
    • Features & Interviews
    • Best Of Lagos
    • Things To Do

    © 2020 The Lagos Today - Nkali.

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password?

    Create New Account!

    Fill the forms bellow to register

    All fields are required. Log In

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In
    %d bloggers like this: