Photo/Illutration The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee officials explain how the tickets will be handled in Tokyo on June 23. (Pool)

The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee is considering postponing the announcement of the results of a lottery to determine which fans of those who purchased tickets will be allowed to attend the competitions, sources associated with the Olympics said. 

The results were initially scheduled to be announced on July 6. 

Through the lottery, a total of 910,000 tickets, or about 20 percent of tickets sold to fans, is scheduled to be refunded. 

However, the number of spectators allowed to attend, if any, will likely finally be decided after determining whether the pre-emergency measures for Tokyo and other prefectures will be lifted after July 11 or extended.

The number of spectators for each Olympic venue was initially limited to 50 percent of capacity, up to a maximum of 10,000, under the assumption that the pre-emergency measures would be lifted on that date. 

But the number of new COVID-19 cases has continued rising in the capital, sparking concern.

The central and Tokyo governments and the organizing committee said that they still have the option of no spectators if the pre-emergency measures are extended. However, some officials associated with the Tokyo Games are discussing a plan of allowing up to 5,000 spectators to attend.

An additional lottery will target tickets sold for the Opening and Closing ceremonies, and eight sports including track and field, baseball, soccer and golf. 

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