The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games were postponed one year due to the COVID-19 health emergency and the lack of health security to hold them on their original date.
The Olympics will take place this summer after being suspended last year. Japan, the host country, will make use of its technological resources to monitor the health situation during the event. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced that Japan will use a facial recognition technology system to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among athletes.
Originally the facial recognition system was intended to be used for security purposes, however, given the current situation, it will also be used to monitor the health of the more than 11,000 athletes who will participate. A Japanese electronics company will place security cameras in stadiums and the Olympic Village to record body temperature and whether athletes are wearing masks.
On the other hand, Japan's largest telecommunications company designed a software for mobile tracking of athletes, to alert about possible contagions and to trace the people with whom they had contact.
In addition, to ensure that athletes do not break the sanitary measures inside the Olympic Village, the organization will provide athletes with a bracelet that will monitor their movements to prevent them from breaking the protocols. The bracelet will keep athletes identified and include their biometric data.