Tokyo chief admits 2020 Olympic Games could face TWO-YEAR postponement due to coronavirus threat
By David Coverdale For The Daily Mail 22:30 GMT 10 Mar 2020
The Olympics could be held in 2022 if coronavirus stops it going ahead this year
A Tokyo chief said two-year postponement is more likely than a full cancellation
IOC and Tokyo 2020 officials have repeatedly insisted the Games will go ahead
But moving event to 2022 will have huge bearing on the Commonwealth Games
The Olympics could be held in 2022 if coronavirus stops it going ahead this summer, according to a member of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee.
Haruyuki Takahashi has said a postponement of two years is more likely than a full cancellation because of the financial ramifications for the International Olympic Committee.
Officials from the IOC and Tokyo 2020 have repeatedly insisted the Games will go ahead as planned in July and August.
The Olympics could be held in 2022 if coronavirus stops it going ahead in the summer.
But Takahashi, one of 25 members of the Organising Committee’s executive board, told the Wall Street Journal: ‘We’ll have to start talking about this seriously from April. I don’t think the Games could be cancelled, it’d be a delay.
‘The International Olympic Committee would be in trouble if there’s a cancellation. American TV rights alone provide them with a huge amount.’
Takahashi stated that a two-year delay would be the most feasible solution because sports schedules for the next year have largely been decided.
Japan is one of the many countries now battling to keep the spread of the virus under control.
A postponement until later this year would mean the Games clashing with major professional sports leagues like the NFL, which would cause problems for NBC, the Olympic broadcasters in America.
The source:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sportsnews/article-8097805/Tokyo-chief-admits-2020-Olympic-Games-face-two-year-postponement-coronavirus.html?ito=native_share_article-masthead
0 comments: