Photo/Illutration Shigeru Omi, the chairman of the government panel of experts dealing with the novel coronavirus pandemic, holds a news conference. (Pool)

The government's top health adviser on the COVID-19 pandemic said the most desirable outcome for the Olympics being staged in Tokyo next month would be for no spectators in the stands.

The proposal released June 18 was signed by Shigeru Omi, the chairman of the government panel of experts dealing with the pandemic, and Takaji Wakita, the head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases who chairs the health ministry’s advisory panel, along with 24 other experts.

Omi presented the proposal the same day to Seiko Hashimoto, the head of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee, and Yasutoshi Nishimura, the state minister in charge of economic revitalization who also leads the government’s handling of the pandemic.

In his meeting with Hashimoto, Omi asked her to pass on the concerns of the experts to the International Olympic Committee.

“Holding the Olympics without spectators would have the least risk of a spread of COVID-19 infections in the venue,” the proposal states.

It called for the Olympics to be held without spectators regardless of infection numbers on July 23, when the Games are scheduled to kick off.

The proposal went on to detail conditions the experts wanted in place if the government decides to allow domestic spectators, which seems likely at this stage.

One was that the limit on spectator numbers be made much stricter than the general one for other large events. Currently, events can be held with half of the seats of a facility filled, with an upper limit of 5,000.

The second condition in the proposal was to only allow in spectators who reside in the prefecture where the venue is located. That would restrain the movement of people across prefectural boundaries.

It also said that if the government detects signs of another surge in new infections or of the medical care system on the brink of collapse, an immediate decision should be made to hold events with no fans in the stands.

The proposal asked the Olympic organizing committee to cancel events outside of the sporting venues where a large number of people might gather. It also proposed encouraging a new style of cheering on the athletes during a pandemic.

It urged the government to declare a state of emergency even while the Olympics are being held if signs emerge of a new surge in COVID-19 cases or the medical care system is being squeezed by a large number of patients.

The proposal also called on the organizing committee and central government to inform the general public as soon as possible of any risk in holding events and steps they planned to take to lower that risk.

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