The 2020 Olympics Have Been Officially Rescheduled

It was this week that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to delay the Tokyo Olympic games until 2021.

On Tuesday, the IOC and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe postponed the 2020 Olympics, which were scheduled to begin July 24 in Tokyo, and the Paralympic Games for no later than summer 2021.

The IOC had been met with many calls to postpone the games due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Games “must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games and the international community”, the IOC and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee said in a statement.

Japan had spent more than $12bn on the event but its citizens were understanding of the postponement. According to a Kyodo news poll last week, almost 70% of respondents said they did not expect the Games to go ahead this summer.

Benoît Vêtu, the head coach of the Japan track cycling team, said the IOC had made the right decision. “It’s only just been announced, so I don’t know exactly how the riders feel about it, but we’ll discuss it in the morning during training,” Vêtu said to the Guardian. “I know for sure that they will stay motivated for another year. We have a very big group with some talented riders, and now they have an extra year to keep improving.”

According to the World Health Organization, the decision was “difficult but wise” as the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the globe.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press briefing Wednesday that the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll.

“I thank Prime Minister Abe and the members of the IOC for making this sacrifice to protect the health of athletes, spectators and officials,” Tedros said.

The coronavirus has killed over 16,000 people globally thus far.