The Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics will be held just a week from today even though Japan remains in the grip of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

As athletes and Olympic delegations start descending on Japan in droves from all over the world, disturbing signs are emerging of optimistic assumptions and ill-preparedness with regard to safety issues, which is causing confusion.

Most worrisome is that the organizers and the Japanese government are taking no effective actions to deal with problems that threaten to make the health crisis even worse.

Their apparent lack of a sense of responsibility will only fuel more doubt and anger about the mammoth international sporting event.

As he has done so many times in the past, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach again came out with a shocking and outrageous remark.

During his July 14 meeting with Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga at the prime minister’s office, Bach said those involved in the Olympics “do not bring any risks to the Japanese people.”

When reporters pointed out that there had been a number of cases in which Olympic officials had violated COVID-19 rules, Bach dismissed the concerns by saying he had heard no report of violations that could pose any risks to the Japanese people.

If that is really the case, there must be some serious internal communication problems within the organization he heads. Or do those at the top simply assume that some violations of rules will inevitably occur and think they are not worth making a fuss about?

Either way, Bach’s views about the health risks stemming from the Olympics as well as his qualifications as the person with the ultimate responsibility for the smooth running of the event should be called into question.

The reality is at odds with the optimistic picture painted by the Olympic chief.

Organizers promised to ensure safety and security by creating isolation “bubbles” for athletes and Olympic officials to prevent further COVID-19 cases. But we are hearing many disturbing stories about how Olympic participants are not strictly separated from other passengers and guests at airports and hotels.

The organizers also said Olympic participants would be subject to strict restrictions on activity and monitoring by “surveillance officers” for a certain period after their entry into Japan. But we see no signs of these measures being taken except for security guards at hotel entrances. There is no way of knowing how long each participant has been in Japan, in the first place.

Despite experts’ warnings it would be impossible to create perfect “bubbles,” organizers said they could and would proceed with the plan. They need to deliver on their promise to the Japanese public and must not fail. Or did they simply make an empty promise to avoid giving a sincere response to tough questions?

There are many other questions about the operation and management of the sporting event.

How long will athletes classified as close contacts of an infected individual be isolated and under what conditions will they be allowed to take part in competitions, for instance? Who will make the decisions and how will they be held responsible for the consequences? Organizers have yet to give clear answers to these questions.

Since it has been decided that spectators will be banned from most venues, there is a desperate need to review the plans for medical, security and transportation services and the deployment of volunteers. The results of these reviews, as well as remaining details of plans to deal with problems due to extremely high temperatures, are matters of great concern to those living in areas where Olympic events are to be held. Organizers need to disclose how they intend to tackle these challenges as soon as possible.

The health risk to the Japanese public is not the only source of concern. A series of revelations about organizational sloppiness in preparing for potential risks and problems has prompted Japanese and overseas experts to voice concerns that Olympic participants from overseas may bring viruses back home, causing them to spread globally. Another global wave of infections originating in Japan must be prevented at all cost.

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 16