Spectators will be barred from the start of the Tokyo Olympics torch relay, organisers said Monday, announcing a pared-back launch as the countdown to the postponed Games begins in earnest. “The grand start ceremony and the first section of the Fukushima torch relay… will not be open to the public,” organisers said in a statement, adding that the festivities would be broadcast live online. READ ALSO: Petrol subsidy to gulp N102.96bn in MarchThe announcement comes ahead of a decision on whether fans from overseas will be allowed to enter Japan for the postponed Games, expected to be taken before the torch relay begins on March 25. The torch relay will begin in Fukushima prefecture, which last week marked the 10th anniversary of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster that left 18,500 dead or missing. But the torch, headed for the Olympics opening ceremony on July 23, will get a more muted send-off than originally planned.

Source: Punch March 15, 2021 11:37 UTC