The Swiss voice in the world since 1935

Olympic athletes to get free shots from Pfizer and BioNTech 

The Swiss-based International Olympic Committee (IOC) says vaccine developers Pfizer and BioNTech will donate doses to inoculate athletes and officials gearing up for the Tokyo Olympics. 


coaches oversee a swim competition
They Tokyo Olympics were originally scheduled to start in July 2020, but were postponed due to Covid-19 fear. Verwendung Weltweit

The doses will be delivered this month so that Olympic delegations can receive two shots before arriving in Tokyo for the opening of the games on July 23. 

“We are inviting the athletes and participating delegations of the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games to lead by example and accept the vaccine where and when possible,” IOC President Thomas Bach said in a statement. 

The Lausanne-based organisation said national Olympic committees will work with governments to coordinate local distribution in accordance with each country’s vaccination guidelines and regulations. 

It also noted that the additional doses delivered by Pfizer and BioNTech will not be taken from existing programmes, but will be in addition to current quotas and planned deliveries worldwide. 

It’s the second major vaccination deal for the IOC after an agreement in March with Chinese officials to buy and distribute Chinese vaccines ahead of the Tokyo Games and next year’s Beijing Winter Games. 

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

Landslide in Blatten VS causes 320 million francs in damage

More

Landslide in Blatten causes CHF320 million in damage

This content was published on The landslide in Blatten VS and the resulting floods caused damage totalling CHF 320 million. Around CHF 260 million of this was due to damage to buildings and household contents, according to estimates by Swiss private insurers.

Read more: Landslide in Blatten causes CHF320 million in damage
Brienz GR closed due to landslide risk

More

Swiss village of Brienz closed due to landslide risk

This content was published on The Graubünden village of Brienz was closed again on Monday due to the risk of landslides. Rock masses on the mountain above the village recently accelerated to such an extent that they are threatening to collapse. The inhabitants have been evacuated since last November.

Read more: Swiss village of Brienz closed due to landslide risk
Failure to render assistance in the event of rape remains unpunishable

More

Failure to help rape victims remains unpunishable in Switzerland

This content was published on Failing to come to the aid of a rape victim will remain unpunishable. Against the advice of the National Council, the Council of States on Monday rejected by 30 votes to 13 a Socialist parliamentary initiative to review the current law.

Read more: Failure to help rape victims remains unpunishable in Switzerland

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR