Olympic expert Hambüchen annoys one thing above all at the Tokyo Games - "It's a bit sad"

The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo will be a very special event.

Rio hero Fabian Hambüchen especially misses the fans - but can understand the decision.

Munich - In a few days the time will have come: The 2020 Olympic Games * will begin in Tokyo.

But when the opening ceremony takes place on Friday, one thing will be missing - the audience.

Despite a European Football Championship in front of 65,000 fans in some cases, it was decided that no fans are allowed in the stadiums at the Olympics *.

Not only the athletes find this a shame, but also many participants.

First and foremost, someone who knows what it feels like to win Olympic gold in a sold-out hall: Fabian Hambüchen.

"After the exercise, when you've done a great job and nobody applauds - that's a bit sad," said the 33-year-old on Tuesday.

For some gymnasts who have no chance of a medal or a final, the Olympic Games are usually a great experience.

“They love the great atmosphere.” For them it is a real shame that nobody is there.

Olympia 2021: Expert Hambüchen annoys one thing at the Tokyo Games - "It's a bit sad"

Nonetheless, it was the right decision not to let fans into the stadium and the halls.

When asked about the European Football Championship, where two thirds of the fans were allowed in the semi-finals and final at London's Wembley Stadium, he did not want to start a fundamental discussion.

"Of course we can also talk about why it is possible to have 60,000 spectators at the European Football Championship * in England and why we cannot have spectators in Tokyo," said the former horizontal bar specialist.

But that is a huge discussion "that we shouldn't talk about".

The most important thing for Tokyo is to “stay as healthy as possible”.

Video: Would you have recognized him?

Fabian Hambüchen with a new hairstyle

Which gymnast does Hambüchen believe will be as successful at the Olympics as himself in 2016? For the EM second Lukas Dauser from Unterhaching on parallel bars and Elisabeth Seitz from Stuttgart on the uneven bars, he calculates medal chances. “Both have chances for the finals,” he said. "And if you are in the final, anything is possible." In the men's and women's squad, however, it will be difficult to reach the finals. The gymnastics competitions start on Saturday.

Hambüchen won the gold medal on the horizontal bar at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro five years ago. He then ended his international career. At the end of 2020, the "turn-flea" seriously injured his knee while filming a TV show. Now he's working on his fitness like crazy again. Hambüchen will be seen as the Olympics at

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