Sydney: Ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, Australia has started administering COVID-19 vaccines to athletes around the country on Monday to give them “comfort and certainty” for their final preparations for the event.
Australia has been relatively slow to roll out vaccines to the general population but Olympic and Paralympic athletes have been allowed to jump the queue before they travel to the Jul 23 to Aug 8 Games.
The rollout began with swimming star Campbell, who is targeting a fourth Olympics, among the first to step forward.
The AOC has set up vaccination centres in Australia’s state capitals and Canberra.
More than 2,000 athletes, coaches and officials nominated by the AOC and Paralympics Australia are expected to receive their shots before they travel.
Meanwhile, Japan has extended a state of emergency in Tokyo until the end of May and is struggling to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases.
