The Tokyo Olympics will take place from July 23 to August 8 next year. The IOC decided on Monday after consultation with the Japanese organization committee and the Japanese government.
This postpones the largest sports tournament in the world for a year. The event was scheduled for July 24 through August 9 this year, but due to the corona pandemic, the IOC decided to postpone the Games last week.
The Paralympic Games will also take place a year later than originally planned. This event will begin on August 24, 2021 and will run through September 5.
“I would like to thank all national sports federations for their unanimous support,” said IOC President Thomas Bach in a statement from the IOC. “I am also grateful to our athletic committee, we have been in constant contact with them in recent days.”
The corona virus has presented the IOC with an “unprecedented challenge”, says Bach. “But we can meet this challenge. Humanity is currently in a dark tunnel, the Olympics may be the light at the end of that tunnel.”
Organizational committee happy with quick decision
Yoshiro Mori, chairman of the organizing committee, is pleased that a new date is soon known. “Setting the date is extremely important in preparing for the event. Now we can continue in our process.”
The IOC reported last week that the Games would be held in 2021, at the latest in the summer. A date earlier in the year was also an option, especially because it can be very hot in Tokyo in July and August. For that reason, the Olympic marathon is held in the more northern Sapporo.
The new start date of the Games is less than two weeks after the end of the European Football Championship, which was also postponed by a year earlier. The European Championship will run from June 11 to July 11, 2021.
Olympic Games are unique
The postponement of the Games costs Japan a lot of money, according to calculations possibly 4 billion euros. This amount is partly built up on the maintenance and rental of stadiums.
“Because we have reserved all stadiums this summer, they cannot reserve other events,” said Mori. “How are we going to solve that? We have to look at this per stadium and it takes a lot of time.”
A solution must also be found for the Olympic village. That would be 11,000 athletes staying next summer, after which it would serve as an apartment complex. Buyers or tenants have already been found for many homes.
It is the first time in 124 years of history that the Games have been postponed. The event was canceled three times in the past due to the World Wars (Berlin 1916, Helsinki 1940 and London 1944).
Athletes who have already qualified for the Olympic Games will retain their ticket.
Follow the latest developments around the virus in the sports world in us live blog.
The coronavirus in short
- The coronavirus mainly spreads from person to person via sneezing and cough drops. The chance of becoming infected through surfaces such as door handles is small. This chance decreases if you wash your hands often.
- You can considerably reduce the chance of spreading by keeping at least 1.5 meters away from others.
- An infected person infects two to three others on average. Precautions are necessary to contain this.
- The vast majority of patients have mild (flu-like) complaints.
- Almost all deaths involve the elderly or other vulnerable persons, such as heart, lung or diabetes patients. If everyone complies with the measures, this reduces their risks.
- Read here what precautions you should take.
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