FIG President Morinari Watanabe hopes the upcoming gymnastics event can provide a boost for Tokyo 2020 ©Getty Images

International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) President Morinari Watanabe has expressed hope the upcoming gymnastics competition at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium will help "open the door" to Tokyo 2020.

The FIG announced last month a one-off competition featuring athletes from China, Russia, the United States and the host nation Japan.

The event is scheduled to take place on November 8 at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium.

The competition will be one of the first international sporting events hosted by Japan since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Watanabe told the news agency Reuters that he hopes holding the event successfully will provide a boost for Tokyo 2020.

"I feel pressure and responsibility at every event, naturally," Watanabe told Reuters.

"I feel the greatest pressure ever at this event in my life.

"We want to open the door to Tokyo 2020."

Organisers are also likely to use the competition as a test for the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Athletes will have to undergo "several" tests for coronavirus, both before arriving in Tokyo and during their stay in the Japanese capital.

The athletes will reportedly not face quarantine periods required for travellers to Japan, but will be quarantined for two weeks in their own country prior to the event.

Gymnasts movements are expected to be limited to the venue and the team hotel on arrival.

This potentially could be repeated at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games next year.

Kōhei Uchimura is among the gymnasts expected to compete at the event ©Getty Images
Kōhei Uchimura is among the gymnasts expected to compete at the event ©Getty Images

Draft coronavirus countermeasures, produced by a three-party council, have suggested a "general principle" could be adopted to limit the range of athletes’ movement to facilities managed by Tokyo 2020, such as competition venues and training facilities.

The draft added measures such as encouraging athletes and officials to travel only via designated vehicles could be considered, although limited public transport use may be acceptable if unavoidable.

Apparatus in training halls and on the field of play will be cleaned and disinfected at the end of each session at the international team gymnastics event as part of COVID-19 protocols.

Spectators will be allowed into the venue but capacity will be restricted to 2,000.

Athletes are set to feature as part of two teams.

One will be named team friendship and the other named team solidarity.

Eight male and eight female gymnasts will be included on each team.