Miranda Ayim, Nathan Hirayama will be Canada’s flag-bearers for Tokyo Olympics – National | Globalnews.ca

Miranda Ayim, a three-time Olympic women’s basketball player, and rugby sevens co-captain Nathan Hirayama will be Canada’s flag-bearers at the Tokyo Olympics.

The Canadian Olympic Committee announced the decision on Monday as the clock ticks down to the start of the Olympics, which were delayed last year by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Events begin in less than one week, with restrictions in place on spectators, officials and athletes as Japan attempts to limit the spread of the virus among the thousands of international athletes and officials arriving for the Games.

Games officials said around 11,500 athletes are expected in Japan to compete, while another estimated 79,000 journalists, officials and staff are also expected to be in attendance.

Masks will be mandatory for everyone in attendance.

According to the Tokyo Olympics Playbook obtained by Global News, athletes travelling to attend will be required to show two separate, negative COVID-19 test result certificates before they even set foot in Tokyo, including one within 96 hours of departure and another within 72 hours. They will also be expected to download and activate one app that will monitor their location and be used for contact tracing, and another that will send out daily temperature and health check reports.

Athletes will be tested upon arrival and will have their temperatures checked each time they enter an Olympic venue. Masks are required for the duration of the Games, and athletes will be required to replace masks as soon as they become damp and to wash them once a day.

—With files from Global’s Emerald Bensadoun.

More to come.