Putting sterile liquid instead of water for contestants… and the authorities open an investigation

Japanese authorities have promised an investigation after sterilizing liquid was poured into cups placed at the beverage distribution point for participants in the 5,000-meter race last weekend in the central Yamanashi Prefecture.

The Yamanashi High School Athletic Association indicated that the sterilizer was placed in a plastic bottle without any identification label, inside a cardboard box, along with drinking water bottles.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is usually used to protect against the coronavirus, and it has become ubiquitous in Japan since the outbreak began in 2020.

One of the contestants collapsed, vomited and stopped walking after drinking the sterile liquid, while two others spit it out and continued the competition.

Three schoolgirls in total were taken to hospital for treatment and are believed to be in the process of recovery, and Yamanashi Governor Kotaro Nagasaki yesterday promised an independent investigation into the matter.

“On behalf of the county, I would like to sincerely apologize to the athlete and her family,” he said.