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| - Australia's softball team became the first athletes to land in Japan for the Olympics on Tuesday, in a major milestone for the pandemic-postponed Games which continue to face controversy. The "Aussie Spirit" squad touched down in Narita airport outside Tokyo along with their support staff, and were immediately ushered off for coronavirus testing. The delegation are all vaccinated but still faced testing before departure and on arrival in Japan. They will also be subject to stringent restrictions during their stay. The arrival will be a boost for organisers who are battling persistent public opposition and doubt about whether the Games can, or should go ahead. Much of Japan, including Tokyo, is under a virus state of emergency, and polls largely show a majority of Japanese want the Games further delayed or cancelled altogether. But organisers say detailed virus rulebooks will keep participants and the public safe and note that around 80 percent of those in the Olympic Village will be vaccinated. Australia's softball team said they were prepared for the rules and happy to be getting back to play after pandemic disruption. For some, Tokyo 2020 could be their last shot at Olympic glory, with softball not featuring at Paris 2024. "We know it's going to be a bit of a long trip over, we know we're going to go through lots and lots of Covid testing," said player Jade Wall, as the facemask-wearing squad prepared to depart Sydney. "But look, we're all prepared for it, we want to do everything that we can to make sure that we're safe when we get there and we're safe while we're in Japan as well." The team will head from the airport straight to their training base in Ota city, around 100 kilometres (about 60 miles) north of Tokyo. The rules will be strict. No family members are allowed, with just 10 staff members travelling with the squad. And the entire delegation will be kept to a single hotel floor for sleeping, eating and working out at the gym. "The only reason why (they) would be leaving the hotel is to go to the ballpark and back. They will be having less daily contact with the public than they would in Australia," Softball Australia CEO David Pryles said. But the trip is still a "huge" moment for the team, which had its Olympic preparations interrupted by the pandemic and hasn't played together since February 2020, he told AFP. The squad will be playing local teams and winnowing down athletes to a 15-woman side before moving into the Olympic Village on July 17. Their first fixture -- against the hosts -- will kick off Olympic competition on July 21, two days before the opening ceremony. qt-sah/jm
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