蜜芽传媒

The opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics finally takes place today - but it's not going to be the party it's meant to be for residents. A spike in Covid-19 cases means stadiums won't be open for general spectators, and people have been told to not even gather for public screenings.

Add to that a series of scandals - most recently the sacking of the opening ceremony鈥檚 Artistic Director over a joke about the holocaust - and you can see why many locals are failing to get excited.

Masanori Sen is a businessman in Osaka who says he won't be watching:

"Whenever I watch the TV there's just too many scandals, so I couldn't bear to watch it. It's just embarrassing... Whenever I talk to my friends and colleagues, no-one's talking about it. It's just a feeling of division. It doesn't feel like a festival."

(Photo: A girl skates past the "Tokyo 2020" signage on the Dream Bridge. Credit: Getty Images)