Gymnasts are used to having pressure on their shoulders, but the athletes heading to Tokyo for next month’s special meet might feel that they are carrying an Olympian burden.
The meet is to feature gymnasts from Japan, China, Russia and the US, and marks the first international event to be held at a Tokyo Olympics venue since the Games were postponed in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For Tokyo, it is a major test of the city’s ability to hold an international sporting event during the pandemic.
Photo: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY
For the six US gymnasts who have elected to compete, it is a chance to be an Olympic trailblazer.
“This opportunity is huge for any athlete, not just gymnasts,” Yul Moldauer, a bronze medalist at the 2017 World Championships, said from his home in Colorado. “We are in a weird time for sporting events, and so this is our chance to really go out there and kind of make things feel normal again. We get to go out there and compete, with everything running smoothly, other countries, other competitors, other athletes will be like: ‘Wow, they have created a way it is safe.’”
With the COVID-19 pandemic still raging, the event is not to be run exactly as it would have been before the health crisis.
“There are procedures we will have to follow, but that is just life right now,” Moldauer, 23, added. “You have to knock down the doors and not let anything get in your way. Just take it on, accept it and prove to everyone that it is going to be okay.”
All four nations were invited to send up to eight gymnasts, but the US are sending a smaller delegation, as only six felt confident in making the trip.
“This whole year is filled with a lot of firsts, so I am super excited,” said 16-year-old eMjae Frazier, who has never previously traveled outside the US. “I feel like this is an advantage for me because I have a chance to compete first ... to see how it all goes.”
The one-day meet is to take place on Nov. 8 at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium — the site of handball at next year’s Games — and to be attended by 2,000 spectators.
Japan has been relatively successful at containing the coronavirus and the foreign athletes heading to Tokyo must undergo regular testing in their home countries.
“I am sure everyone has been doing what they are supposed to and following guidelines,” Frazier said. “I am very positive that we will all be safe.”
Once in Japan, the athletes would not need to quarantine, but would be limited to moving between the gymnasium and the team hotel.
Under protocols drawn up in consultation with the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), the athletes are also to be tested daily.
“We got a lot of information from FIG around the medical protocols,” US Gymnastics chief programs officer Stefanie Korepin said. “Our medical team vetted those very carefully. They were in direct contact with the FIG medical team. We got to a point where we felt the risk was low enough to be able to offer this opportunity to our athletes.”
US Gymnastics have chartered a flight to take their delegation to Tokyo.
“Our bigger concern was the travel portion,” Korepin said. “We felt that once we go to Japan, given the situation in Japan and the bubble that the FIG is creating for the organizations, we felt the risk was very low on that end.”
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