COVID cancels the Olympic surfing beach party that never was
People watch from behind a security fence during the final day of the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. Some local Japanese fans and beachgoers did manage to find a way to lay eyes on the athletes and the competition site once the games began. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

People watch from behind a security fence during the final day of the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. Some local Japanese fans and beachgoers did manage to find a way to lay eyes on the athletes and the competition site once the games began. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Jul. 28, 2021 04:13 AM EDT
Photographers work, center, during the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Photographers work, center, during the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Jul. 28, 2021 04:12 AM EDT
People watch from behind a security fence during the final day of the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. Some local Japanese fans and beachgoers did manage to find a way to lay eyes on the athletes and the competition site once the games began. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

People watch from behind a security fence during the final day of the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. Some local Japanese fans and beachgoers did manage to find a way to lay eyes on the athletes and the competition site once the games began. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Jul. 28, 2021 04:12 AM EDT
Lifeguards stand on the beach during the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Lifeguards stand on the beach during the surfing competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, at Tsurigasaki beach in Ichinomiya, Japan. The Olympic beach party that never was may be the only sore spot for surfing’s long-awaited debut that finished triumphantly this week. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Jul. 28, 2021 04:06 AM EDT