Controversy Over Refund Policy if Tokyo Olympics Canceled Due to COVID-19... "Refunds Likely Difficult"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] As the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) spreads worldwide, raising the possibility of the Tokyo Olympics being canceled, controversy is arising in Japan over the refund policy for Olympic tickets.

On the 18th, the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee's ticket purchase and usage regulations stated, "If the obligations stipulated in the ticket regulations cannot be fulfilled due to force majeure, the organization shall not be held responsible for such non-fulfillment." The organizing committee cited examples of force majeure including war, rebellion, terrorism, fire, flood, and public health emergencies. In other words, even if disasters or natural calamities prevent spectators from attending the Olympics, the organizing committee operating the Olympics is not responsible for refunds.

Accordingly, if the cancellation of the Olympics due to the spread of COVID-19 infection is classified as a public health emergency, those who purchased tickets will not be refunded even if the Olympics are canceled because of COVID-19.

Regarding this, the Asahi Shimbun reported on the 18th that an anonymous official related to the event stated that if the Olympics are canceled due to COVID-19, it would be considered a public health emergency, and thus refunds are unlikely.

According to the organizing committee, a total of 5.08 million tickets for the Tokyo Olympics and 1.65 million tickets for the Tokyo Paralympics have been sold, and ticket sales revenue is expected to reach approximately 90 billion yen (about 1.0484 trillion won) based on the most recent budget, Asahi reported.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.