Canada sending 371 athletes to Tokyo’s Olympics, its largest team in 37 years
Posted July 13, 2021 9:04 am.
Canada is sending its largest team to a Summer Olympics in 37 years, with the Tokyo Games set to open in just over a week.
The Canadian Olympic Committee has announced the 371 athletes who will compete in Tokyo starting July 23.
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There are 225 athletes who are competing in women’s events, and 146 athletes who are competing in men’s events named to the team.
Most of the individuals come from Ontario, at 171. B.C. is home to 95 individuals who will be competing in Japan, with the remaining athletes hailing from Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.
The athletes will be accompanied by 131 coaches.
This is Canada’s largest contingent since the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
The Tokyo Summer Games were originally set for the summer of 2020. However, the Olympics were delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many athletes have voiced concerns about the Games going ahead this summer, despite COVID-19 numbers remaining high.
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Japan also has a low vaccination rate, well below some of its allies.
On July 8, the country declared a state of emergency for Tokyo, with organizers later adding fans would not be allowed to watch events in person.
“Taking into consideration the impact of the Delta strain, and in order to prevent the resurgence of infections from spreading across the country, we need to step up virus prevention measures,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said, referring to concerns over the COVID-19 variant that has created new waves of the virus in many countries around the world.
About 11,000 Olympic athletes and 4,400 Paralympians are expected to enter Japan, along with tens of thousands of coaches, administrators, broadcasters, and media. According to the IOC, more than 80 per cent of people who will be living in the Olympic Village will be vaccinated.
Canadian tennis stars Bianca Andreescu, Denis Shapovalov, and Milos Raonic have all opted out of the Summer Games due to pandemic concerns.
