Japanese Emperor Naruhito is set to declare the opening of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games ©Getty Images

Japanese Emperor Naruhito is expected to declare the start of the Paralympics here in Tokyo after it was confirmed that he will be attending the Opening Ceremony.

The Imperial Household Agency has announced Naruhito will be present at the ceremony, scheduled to be held on August 24.

It was also confirmed that Empress Masako will not be attending the showpiece event as part of COVID-19 countermeasures to limit the number of attendees.

Naruhito officially declared the opening of the Olympics on July 23 and is poised to carry out that responsibility again for the Paralympics.

According to Kyodo News, the 61-year-old faced criticism for the wording used at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics.

It is reported he said "commemorating" in Japanese rather than "celebrating", which is traditionally said during the declaration.

Naruhito also declared the opening of the Nagano 1998 Winter Paralympics.

More than 4,400 Para athletes are scheduled to compete across 22 sports at Tokyo 2020.

The Games, taking place a year later than planned due to the coronavirus pandemic, are due to be largely held behind closed doors in response to rising cases of COVID-19.

IOC President Thomas Bach and Japanese Emperor Naruhito are poised to attend the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics ©Getty Images
IOC President Thomas Bach and Japanese Emperor Naruhito are poised to attend the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics ©Getty Images

All events in Tokyo and other prefectures under a state of emergency will be closed to the public, as was the case with the Olympic Games.

Japan’s capital has been under a state of emergency since July 12 as the number of COVID-19 infections continues to rise.

Tokyo has confirmed 5,534 new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, up from 4,774 registered a week ago.

Osaka has also reported 2,443 infections in one day – a daily record for the Japanese city.

Ahead of the Olympics, Naruhito admitted he was "extremely worried" over staging the Games due to the COVID-19 infection rate.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach is expected to return here to Tokyo for the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics.

Bach is due to arrive in the Japanese capital on Monday (August 23) - the day before the Games are scheduled to open.

It is set to be the first time Bach has attended the Opening Ceremony of a Summer Paralympics as IOC President having missed the showpiece event five years ago in Rio de Janeiro.

As insidethegames exclusively revealed, Bach became the first IOC President to miss the ceremony for 32 years when he did not attend in Rio five years ago.