On Wednesday, Apr 14, a western Japanese city canceled the Tokyo Olympics torch relay due to spiking COVID-19 cases becoming the second area to scrap the event as the clock ticks down to the postponed Games.

The decision comes 100 days before the start of the 2020 Olympics and comes amid new concerns about the viability of the event, with virus cases surging in Japan and abroad.

The torch relay kicked off on Mar 25 in Fukushima and was supposed to go through Matsuyama – the hometown of golf hero Hideki Matsuyama – on Apr 21.

It was barred from public roads in the Osaka region this week, with torchbearers instead running in a closed park in front of a limited number of family and friends.

The ongoing pandemic is playing havoc with preparations for the Olympics and fuelling uncertainty about whether the huge event can, or should, take place.