Japan could cancel Tokyo 2021 Olympics due to coronavirus

First Glastonbury, now this. In sobering news after yesterday’s inauguration festivities, Japan has reportedly decided to cancel the 2021 Olympics due to coronavirus. Thursday January 21, Times reported that the Japanese government had “entered into private” to cancel the already postponed 2021 Olympics due to the surge in COVID-19 cases around the world. According to the report written by Richard Lloyd Parry, Japan is trying to find a “way to save face” to announce the decision which “also leaves open the possibility of Tokyo being the host at a later date”. Apparently, Japan’s new goal is to lock in 2032, the next available year, to host the games in Tokyo, which were originally scheduled to start on July 24, 2020, and then rescheduled to start on July 23, 2021. “Nobody wants to be the first. to say it, but the consensus is that it’s too difficult, ”a source told Lloyd Parry. “Personally, I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

However, from now on, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) would not agree. Earlier today, the IOC issued a statement claiming that the 2021 Olympics will go ahead as planned this summer. “At the moment, we have no reason to believe that the Tokyo Olympic Games will not open on July 23 in the Tokyo Olympic Stadium,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “This is why there is no Plan B and this is why we are fully committed to making these Games safe and successful.” While Back was firm about the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, he hinted that it was possible to reduce spectator numbers and use other precautions to keep everyone safe. “When it comes to security, there can be no taboos.”

Publicly, the IOC and Japanese Olympic organizers have tried to assure the public that the 2021 Olympics will take place, with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga calling the upcoming Olympics “proof of human victory against the coronavirus.” But senior IOC member Dick Pound cast doubt on whether the event will actually take place, saying: “I can’t be sure because the elephant going on in the room would be the push. virus. So, whether or not we can see Simone Biles defy gravity again or if the coronavirus will steal from us as well.