The IOC took a stronger stance with regard to the re-arranged Tokyo 2020 Games over the weekend.
In separate interviews both IOC president Thomas Bach and IOC committee member Richard Pound, warned that the re-arrangement will result in “massive” additional costs.
Mr Pound told insidethegames that the IOC must “consider the overall consequences of the unwelcome possibility that, in a worst-case scenario, both 2020 and 2022 could be affected” amid widespread concern over the coronavirus pandemic.
In what appeared to be a warning to certain International Federations (IFs), Mr Pound continued,
“When, as the IOC, you may be asked to ‘share’ in advance income that, in the end, may not be received, it is important not to create an unsustainable ‘entitlement’ relationship,”
“There may well be IFs that have allowed themselves to live in a style that is beyond their incomes.”
“This may call for some internal trimming of the IF sails in these troubled times, before looking to others for a bail-out.”
In an interview with German newspaper Die Welt at the weekend Mr Bach said the IOC would face extra costs of “several hundred million dollars” due to the postponement of Tokyo 2020.
The Games’ organisers in Japan originally put the cost of the event, before Covid-19, at $12.6bn, but the real cost is believed to be twice that.
The added costs of postponing due to COVID-19 has been estimated by Japanese media at anywhere between $2bn and $6bn.
Adding to the uncertainty, in a sportsbusiness report Tokyo Olympics organizing committee chief executive, Toshiro Muto, admitted that there is no guarantee that the Summer Games will take place in 2021 due to the global Covid-19 pandemic . . .
Mr Muto told reporters. “I don’t think anyone would be able to say if it is going to be possible to get it under control by next July or not. We’re certainly are not in a position to give you a clear answer.”
There are currently no alternative arrangements should the health crisis affect the planned staging of the Olympics in 2021.
Related Post:
World Sailing President Kim Andersen replies to media criticism
RSS – Posts