Japan has further expanded a coronavirus state of emergency, currently in Tokyo and five other prefectures, to nine areas, as Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s government is determined to hold the Olympics in just over two months.

Japan has been struggling to slow the infections ahead of the Games.

The three additions include Japan’s northern island state of Hokkaido, where the Olympic marathon will be held, as well as Hiroshima and Okayama in western Japan.