Japan athletics chief fights back tears over memory of Covid-hit Olympics

Tokyo: The head of Japanese athletics fought back tears Friday as she described how the world championships in Tokyo can wipe away the painful memor...

Tokyo: The head of Japanese athletics fought back tears Friday as she described how the world championships in Tokyo can "wipe away" the painful memory of empty stands at the Olympics four years ago.

The Tokyo Games were delayed a year to 2021 because of the pandemic and held in strict conditions to prevent the spread of Covid, with fans shut out of most venues and athletes forced to undergo tests and social distancing.

The world championships will have no such restrictions when they start on Saturday and tens of thousands of fans are expected to flock to Tokyo's National Stadium, which seats almost 70,000.

Japan Association of Athletics Federations president Yuko Arimori said she hoped the competition would remind people of the value of sport.

"Sport isn't just about the athletes but about everyone getting energy from it and lifting each other up, and I think that kind of energy is important," she said.