In an interview for BBC Sport, IOC President Thomas Bach says he understands why the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Games would have to be cancelled if it cannot take place next summer.
Bach told BBC Sport . . . “You cannot forever employ 3,000 to 5,000 people in an organising committee. You cannot have the athletes being in uncertainty.”
In a wide-ranging interview, Bach also:
- admitted the job of re-organising the Games was “a mammoth task”
- warned that the event would “definitely be different” with a focus on “essentials”
- would not be drawn on whether a vaccine for Covid-19 would be needed for the event to take place
- insisted staging the Games behind closed doors was “not what we want”, but he needs more time to consider whether that was feasible
Bach’s opinion confirmed an earlier statement by Games chief Yoshiro Mori, that the postponed Tokyo Olympics will be “scrapped” if they cannot take place in 2021.
Tokyo 2020 is now scheduled to run from 23 July to 8 August in 2021 after being delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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