IOC President Thomas Bach wearing a protective mask talks to journalists during a visit to Olympic and Paralympic Village in Tokyo Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020.
(Nicolas Datiche/Pool Photo via AP)TOKYO – As he toured the Athletes Village on Tuesday, IOC President Thomas Bach issued a gentle plea to all competitors to get vaccinated before the Tokyo Olympics — if a vaccine is available.
In a more private setting, Bach has spoken directly about Olympic athletes’ responsibility to consider the vaccine.
In an on-line session last month with the IOC’s Athletes’ Commission, Bach was asked — among other things — if athletes would be “forced” to be vaccinated.
As well as the 11,000 Olympic athletes, there could be tens of thousands of officials, judges, VIPs, and media and broadcasters traveling to Japan for the games.