After Afghanistan, four other countries withdraw from Tokyo Paralympics

Just days after Afghanistan pulled out of the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics following the recapture of the state by the Taliban, four other nations, too, have withdrawn from the quadrennial event.

The Pacific Island countries of Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and Kiribati will not be competing in the Tokyo Paralympics due to the covid-19 imposed travel restrictions, according to an announcement made by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

"We have a number of nations from the Pacific Islands that will be unable to travel. The reason is that they will have to travel from their country through Australia where there are strict covid-19 rules at the moment," the spokesperson of IPC, Craig Spence, was quoted as saying by Inside The Games.

The 2020 Paralympics is expected to be held from 24th August 2021 to 5th September 2021 in the Japanese city of Tokyo.