With Tokyo under a state of emergency because of a fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, these Games will be contested against the backdrop of unprecedented skepticism about the existential purpose of the Olympic movement, @dylanohernandez writes.
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
About the only person pretending the once-delayed Games are being staged for the public good is IOC President Thomas Bach.
This is about money — specifically the broadcast rights fees that account for the majority of the IOC’s revenue.
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
The Japanese government wants to recover whatever it can of the tens of billions of dollars it has sunk into these Games, even though medical resources will have to be redirected from the pandemic and less than 20% of the population is fully vaccinated.
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
Can the athletes triumph in this climate? Or will their achievements be overshadowed by the negativity?
That likely will be determined by whether the Olympics turn into a superspreader event.
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
How the Games unfold from a public health standpoint will ultimately decide whether these Games represent the best or worst of humanity, whether the enduring image will be that of Biles flipping high in the air ...
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
... or of a frightening health crisis.
lat.ms/3hQvqrM
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.