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Woman Attempts To Put Out Olympic Flame With Water Pistol

Woman Attempts To Put Out Olympic Flame With Water Pistol

The woman was arrested at the scene

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A woman in Japan has been arrested for attempting to extinguish the Olympic flame with a water pistol. You can check out the video here:

In a clip that's been shared widely on social media, the woman can be seen holding the plastic water gun as the Olympic torch was carried through the city of Mito ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.

The woman, who has been named as Kayoko Takahashi, was protesting against the Games, police have said.

She was seen aiming directly at the flame as a runner in the relay made his way around Senba Park.

During the incident the woman could be heard to say: "End the Olympics" and "No Olympics. Stop the games," as she attempted to douse the flame before a steward stepped in with a shield to block the water gun.

Newsflash

Noriaki Nagatsuka, a deputy police chief in the city of Mito, said the 53-year-old was arrested for 'deliberately aiming at the runner and interfering with the relay'.

She told Vice: "You can't shoot water at people for no good reason. She clearly wasn't playing around - this isn't child's play."

The police said that the torch relay was obstructed by the woman's actions and she was arrested at the scene.

The police later confirmed that the runner involved in the incident was the relay's anchor and was on his way to the finish line.

Newsflash

There were no other reported delays or protests at the event.

The incident comes after organisers of the event have said they are limiting the number of attendees at the Games' opening ceremony.

According to the Guardian, only a select number of VIPs, including diplomats and those involved with sponsoring the event, will be welcomed to the 68,000-seater stadium when it kicks off on 23 July.

Newsflash

The Asahi Shimbun newspaper claims that organisers have been forced to cut the number from an initial estimate of around 10,000 special guests due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The paper went on to report that events taking place after 9pm will be held without spectators in an attempt to stop people spending time in the capital when events are finished.

Featured Image Credit: Newsflash

Topics: SPORT, World News, Weird