Tokyo's Olympic fears give way to acceptance, to a point

TOKYO (AP) — When the Tokyo Olympics began during a worsening pandemic in Japan, the majority of the host nation was in opposition, with Emperor Naruhito dropping the word “celebrating” from his opening declaration of welcome.

But once the Games got underway and local media switched to covering Japanese athletes' “medal rush,” many Japanese were won over. They watched TV to cheer on Japanese athletes in an Olympics that ended Sunday with a record 58 medals for the home nation, including 27 gold.

There are still worries that Japan will pay a price for hosting these Games; recent days have seen record numbers of virus cases. But for now, among many, a sense of pride and goodwill is lingering.

“Having the games in the middle of the pandemic didn’t seem like a good idea, and I did wonder if they should be canceled," said Keisuke Uchisawa, 27, an office worker. But the medal haul, he said, was "very exciting and stimulating. Once the Games started, we naturally cheered the athletes and simply enjoyed watching them."

His wife Yuki, a medical worker, worried especially about the pandemic. But she began cheering when she noticed patients at her hospital beaming as they watched the Games. “I saw the power of sports, and I thought it was wonderful,” she said. “Athletes made outstanding performances, and we wanted to cheer for them.”

The couple were recently picking out matching Olympics shirts and pandemic masks from an official goods store in downtown Tokyo. The store, almost empty before the Games, was crowded on a recent weekday toward the end of the Olympics. Many customers appeared to be workers from the neighborhood dropping by during lunch breaks.

Beforehand, a lot of Japanese expressed reluctance or opposition to holding the Olympics during a pandemic that, for them,...