Tokyo fans savor athletics four years after lockdowns (2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo)

Japanese fans soaked up the atmosphere on yesterday’s opening day of the world athletics championships in Tokyo, four years after being shut out of the same stadium for the pandemic-troubled Olympics. The Tokyo Games, postponed a year until 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, took place amid the ghostly backdrop of empty stands, with fans barred to prevent the spread of infection. Japanese spectators were determined to make up for lost time as the world championships opened on a cloudy, muggy morning, with fans arriving before the race walk began at 7:30am. Hajime Kondo, a 41-year-old office worker from nearby...