04:22Journalists from across the world shared their thoughts about witnessing the opening ceremony of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Saturday, while Japanese locals who bought tickets were denied access to the Games due to a surge in COVID-19 infections.
"As we queued to get in, they were all on the other side of this fence and that was as close as they could get. One of my colleagues described it as paying for a party you can't attend and that's how it felt," Matt Lawton, a British journalist at The Times commented at the press centre.
"You could feel nothing but sympathy, really, for the organisers," said Duncan Mackay, editor of Insidethegames. Only journalists, officials and some VIPs are able to attend the events.
The games, which began on Friday are set to last until August 8, after being postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. No audience will be allowed to attend in person apart from a small selection of special guests.
Japan: 'Paying for a party you can't attend' - journalists attending Olympics on ticket holders left out of Games
Journalists from across the world shared their thoughts about witnessing the opening ceremony of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Saturday, while Japanese locals who bought tickets were denied access to the Games due to a surge in COVID-19 infections.
"As we queued to get in, they were all on the other side of this fence and that was as close as they could get. One of my colleagues described it as paying for a party you can't attend and that's how it felt," Matt Lawton, a British journalist at The Times commented at the press centre.
"You could feel nothing but sympathy, really, for the organisers," said Duncan Mackay, editor of Insidethegames. Only journalists, officials and some VIPs are able to attend the events.
The games, which began on Friday are set to last until August 8, after being postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. No audience will be allowed to attend in person apart from a small selection of special guests.
Journalists from across the world shared their thoughts about witnessing the opening ceremony of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Saturday, while Japanese locals who bought tickets were denied access to the Games due to a surge in COVID-19 infections.
"As we queued to get in, they were all on the other side of this fence and that was as close as they could get. One of my colleagues described it as paying for a party you can't attend and that's how it felt," Matt Lawton, a British journalist at The Times commented at the press centre.
"You could feel nothing but sympathy, really, for the organisers," said Duncan Mackay, editor of Insidethegames. Only journalists, officials and some VIPs are able to attend the events.
The games, which began on Friday are set to last until August 8, after being postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. No audience will be allowed to attend in person apart from a small selection of special guests.