(TOKYO) — There will be no foreign fans at the Tokyo Olympics this summer after Japan decided to not allow overseas’s spectators entry into the country, according to a press release from Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee.

The decision was announced on Saturday following a virtual meeting between the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Organising Committee Tokyo 2020, and the government of Japan. The Japanese parties cited the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic across the world, the emergence of new variants of the virus, and restricted international travel as the reasoning.

“In order to give clarity to ticket holders living overseas and to enable them to adjust their travel plans at this stage, the parties on the Japanese side have come to the conclusion that they will not be able to enter into Japan at the time of the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee said in a statement. 

The IOC and IPC respected and accepted this conclusion during Saturday’s meeting. 

Spectators who purchased tickets will be refunded. Ticketholders will be informed soon about getting the refund. 

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