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Tokyo’s postponed Olympics will go forward subsequent yr whatever the coronavirus pandemic, IOC vice-president John Coates advised AFP Monday, saying they might be the “Games that conquered Covid”. The Olympics have by no means been cancelled exterior of the world wars and Coates, talking in a cellphone interview, was adamant that the Tokyo Games will begin on their revised date. “It will take place with or without Covid. The Games will start on July 23 next year,” mentioned Coates, who heads the International Olympic Committee’s Coordination Commission for the Tokyo Games.
“The Games were going to be, their theme, the Reconstruction Games after the devastation of the tsunami,” he added, referring to a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan in 2011.
“Now very much these will be the Games that conquered Covid, the light at the end of the tunnel.”
In an historic choice, the 2020 Olympics have been postponed due to the worldwide march of the pandemic and they’re now set to open on July 23, 2021.
But Japan’s borders are nonetheless largely closed to overseas guests and a vaccine is months and even years away, feeding hypothesis about whether or not the Games are possible in any respect.
Japanese officers have made clear they might not delay the Games a second time past 2021.
A latest ballot discovered only one in 4 individuals in Japan need them to go forward subsequent yr, with most backing both one other postponement or a cancellation.
‘Monumental activity’
Coates mentioned the Japanese authorities “haven’t dropped the baton at all” following the postponement, regardless of the “monumental task” of placing the occasion again a yr.
“Before Covid, (IOC president) Thomas Bach said this is the best prepared Games we’ve ever seen, the venues were almost all finished, they are now finished, the village is amazing, all the transport arrangements, everything is fine,” he mentioned.
“Now it’s been postponed by one year, that’s presented a monumental task in terms of re-securing all the venues… something like 43 hotels we had to get out of those contracts and re-negotiate for a year later.
“Sponsorships needed to be prolonged a yr, broadcast rights.”
With much of that work underway, or accomplished, a task force has been set up to look at the different scenarios in 2021 — from how border controls will affect the movement of athletes and officials, to whether fans can pack venues.
The group, comprising Japanese and IOC officials, met for the first time last week.
“Their job now could be to have a look at all of the totally different counter-measures that might be required for the Games to happen,” said Coates, the long-time president of the Australian Olympic Committee.
Promoted
“Some nations could have it (Covid) underneath management, some will not. We’ll have athletes due to this fact coming from locations the place it is underneath management and a few the place it isn’t.
“There’s 206 teams… so there’s a massive task being undertaken on the Japanese side.”
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