IOC President back in Tokyo for start of Paralympics

IOC President, Thomas Bach has returned to Tokyo for the start of the 2020 Paralympic games on Tuesday.

Bach, 67, arrived in Tokyo on Monday ahead of Tuesday evening’s opening ceremony, the organisers said.

Bach was previously in Tokyo for the 2020 Olympic Games.

He was criticised shortly before his departure when he was seen on Tokyo’s Ginza luxury shopping street earlier this month after the games ended.

There is a COVID-19 state of emergency in effect in Tokyo and citizens are encouraged to stay at home.

According to Japanese media, the IOC president did not need to be quarantined when he re-entered Japan for the opening of the Paralympics.

The government made an exception for him on the condition that Bach limits his movements to certain places and events such as the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium and his hotel, Japanese television reports.