While businesses and schools closed down because of COVID-19 and many have lost loved ones the gold and bronze medal achieved from the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and athletes participants brought a ray of hope to all Fijians. Wayne O’Connor Team Fiji COVID liaison offi cer (CLO) shares with us the new protocol they had to follow differently from their various experience.
When the COVID-19 infection rate spiralled in most countries around the world earlier this year Mr O’Connor said the organising committee of Tokyo 2020 put in place a requirement for all National Olympic Committees (NOCs) to appoint within their allocation of team officials, a COVID-19 liaison officer (CLO.) As the COVID-19 liaison officer his job was to oversee all COVID-19 related matters and this includesd preparing Team Fiji to participate safely in the games.
“That preparation embraced all aspects before, during and after the games,” Mr O’Connor said. “In February of 2021 version one of a Playbook was launched.
The 64-page booklet was prepared and developed jointly by the Tokyo Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games 2020, (Tokyo 2020) the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).”
He says the playbooks have been developed jointly by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) and the Government of Japan (GOJ), as well as the world’s leading experts in Health and Sport event delivery ensuring that COVID-19 countermeasures would enable the games to safely take place “Of the CLO it was required that every sport had to have an activity plan prepared, covering the duration of stay in Japan.
“The plan had to list the sport, training venue and competition venue during games time “These venues were selected from a list provided by the Government of Japan and it also emphasised that there were to be no inclusions of venues for sightseeing, tourist sites or visits to public places such as shops and malls or use of public transport.”
Mr O’Connor said the activity plan was to be prepared in the web-based tool, Tokyo 2020 ICON (Infection Control Support System) where every participants in every sports including the entourage had to enter their names as well as the accreditation registration number. “The activity plan was then submitted a month before travelling to Japan so that the Government of Japan was able to verify every plan and given final approval “On the strength of the approval the team was granted permission to enter Japan “Separate activity plans had to be prepared for the varying travel details of individuals within sports, for instance rugby: overseas players arriving in Tokyo at a different time and from another country and the rest of the rugby team.
“Also the separate travel into the Games Village by rugby coach and physiotherapist, ahead of the men and Fijiana manager and fl ag-bearer travelling ahead of the team for the opening ceremony. “Thankfully we received approval for all of Fijiana on the day of travel, Nadi/ Narita.”
In March 2021, Mr O’Connor said Team Fiji launched the Playbook awareness with the National Federations (NF) participating in the games. He said the sessions were interactive, requiring the fullest support of every participant athlete and official.
“On Tuesday, 20th April 2021, Viti Levu went into lockdown, halting temporarily and hindering all forms of sports participation and training “All sports venues and facilities were closed and the NFs had to dig deep to create safe places of training for their athletes and safe bubbles.
“Rugby Men had a head start, drawing on their COVID experiences in France when the majority of the team contracted COVID-19. “Fijiana and the Men were soon given the green light to use training venues when they were able to satisfy the Fiji Sports Commission and Fiji Sports Council with their stringent training protocols.”
Before the team flew out Mr O’Connor said they had to self-quarantine to create a safe travel bubble. He added that the safe bubble had to be complied from when they depart Nadi to when they arrived in Narita, Japan and throughout the 30 plus days of stay in Tokyo “All travelling members had to have a smartphone with OCHA <Online Check-in and Health report App and COCOA<Contact Confi rming App> installed.
“They were contact tracing apps activated with Bluetooth and compliant in Japan and these had to be shown upon arrival in Japan. Daily protocols From the day they arrived Mr O’Connor said every member of Team Fiji, and these included FASANOC president, Makarita Lenoa and CEO/secretary general Lorraine Mar, had to comply provide a saliva sample for analysis, took a temperature reading and enter it in the OCHA. Mr O’Connor said some of the lessons he learnt during his stay in Japan were adapting to the above-mentioned protocols as it was useful. “Before departure the wearing of masks took time to get used to because it felt claustrophobic, spectacles fogged up and speaking from behind a mask was difficult.
In time one became accustomed to mask wearing. “Common sense prevails with good hygiene. Simply washing hands with soap and water has been an age-old protocol that is practiced daily, hopefully in every household. “Maintaining a safe distance while in the dining halls was also given attention. The tables had perspex dividers down the table middle. These were then partitioned for each seated person, opposite and beside “Self-monitoring for symptoms of fl u and maintaining health and safety protocols are countermeasures in which we can all continue to engage daily “Every participant in Team Fiji at the games was vaccinated. This included the many volunteers who came in daily to assist and provide the needed services.
The volunteers had their own facilities for daily countermeasures. “The team attaché was also vaccinated and to keep him in the safe orbit of Team Fiji he was able to be included in the bed allocation, so that he was also in a safe Team Fiji bubble.” As the COVID-19 liaison offi cer he admitted that he also encountered challenges which did not deter his spirits.
“The challenge was tracing of individuals if they had not complied with the daily protocols. These were alerted through emails on a daily basis and required follow-up. Thankfully there was nothing to report or caution to the team. “Wearing a mask took some gettingused- to but it soon became the norm and merely added to part of the daily dress code.” Looking back Mr O’Connor said his experience in the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were different. This year he said they were prevented from all the extra novelties such as sightseeing, visiting places of interest and even meeting with local residents. “There were many acquaintances with whom we had hoped to meet but these visits were not permitted. “Competition was very keen among all participants and they were afforded great spells of concentration and preparation.”
Mr O’Connor said the team spent time at Pre Games Training <PGT> in the host city of Oita and had little to do except train. “They were confi ned to their hotel rooms once they returned from training. Meal times were held in bubbles as well “While there was trepidation about coming out of PGT to join the fray in the Games Village, the athletes just had to experience and be a part of the excitement and exhilaration of being an Olympian and rubbing shoulders with other Olympians, even the opportunity to meet one’s sporting idol or mentor. “The individual sports were permitted to enter the Games Village fi ve days prior to the start of the athlete’s competition and they had to depart within forty-eight hours of the fi nal event or end of their competition.” He said Team Fiji had to seek special exemption because there were no available return fl ights scheduled by Fiji Airways.
“The bulk of the team then travelled in two phases to get home.” Moving forward some of the changes Mr O’Connor hopes to see to help Fijians cope with COVID-19 includes: The current daily reminders of COVID safety protocols are very good.
They need to be persistent and continued with into the foreseeable future, if, as the medics predict, the virus is here to stay. Living lifestyles need to be adjusted to meet the requirements of keeping safe distances, lesser numbers of people in households where it is just the one family dwelling comfortably and therefore avoiding the extended family member or two.
The implementation and use of the careFiji app was an excellent idea and should be maintained, and operational with Bluetooth. This was successfully done in Japan without the use of mobile data. When schools do reopen for in-classroom learning, no doubt the protocols will have to be strictly administered:
Mask wearing
Temperature checks
Keeping a reasonably safe distance
Good room ventilation
Evidence of vaccination –vaccination card or uploaded to a cellphone
A Check-in at the school office for parents/visitors; they should not have access to the classroom and a student can be called to the office -special non-classroom times can be allocated for visits from parents/ guardians.
It is now all the more important that Student Medical/Health Cards are kept updated, especially with Vaccination requirements for school students 15 years and older With the advent of anti-vaxxers coming to the fore I trust that the all-important annual free vaccination schedule for school children provided by the MOH will not deter parents/guardians from consenting Masks that are washable/reusable can be developed. It will avoid the unnecessary and additional burden of cost to families.
It will also ensure that we are free of mask litter. We are free of mask litter- masks disposed carelessly. Driving around Viti Levu last Sunday I couldn’t help but notice how filthy our country is.
There is no pride in common sense and responsible living Mr O’Connor advised the public to follow protocols shared on whatever platform, by the Ministry of Health and all other responsible agencies. “It is in our common interest for decency and in goodwill that we simply use common sense about what we are doing.
“These times more than any other all adults need to take responsibility and to be proactive in avoiding infection of the COVID-19 virus, by not getting infected or infecting others.”
Born in Lautoka Mr O’Connor hails from Lagalevu, Nakasaleka in Kadavu and is a teacher by profession. Mr O’Connor has taught in various private schools in Suva and Nadi and is the principal in a prominent private school in Suva.
He was the Team Fiji general manager that encompassed administrative support for the team and that of the individual sports mangers/coaches.
