Tokyo registers for the first time more than 4,000 daily cases of coronavirus in the middle of the Olympic Games

The authorities of the capital of Japan, have confirmed for the first time this Saturday more than 4,000 daily cases of coronavirus, amid a rebound in infections in recent days in full celebration of the Olympic Games, postponed last year due to the pandemic.

Thus, the number of 4,058 positives exceeds the previous maximum, registered on Thursday – when 3,865 cases of COVID-19-, and represents a third consecutive day above the 3,000 threshold, according to the Japanese news agency Kiodo.

In this way, the average number of infections during the last seven days has reached a record number of 2,920 daily cases, which represents an increase of 117 percent compared to the previous week, despite the fact that the city is under a fourth state of pandemic emergency.

The Japanese government on Friday extended the state of emergency to four other prefectures, including three located around the capital. Tokyo and Okinawa were placed under a state of emergency before the start of the Olympics.

Japanese authorities have faced mounting criticism for their handling of the pandemic, especially because of the spike in cases coinciding with the Olympic Games, although Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga denied on Thursday that there was a relationship between the event and the epidemiological situation.