Olympics delay seems inevitable, says Japan

TOKYO: Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Monday a decision to delay the 2020 Olympics may now be “inevitable”. He was commenting on the International Olympic Committee’s plan to examine the situation over the next few weeks and make a decision, which could include the option to postpone. “If it is difficult to hold [the Games] in a complete way, a decision of postponement would be unavoidable as we think the athletes’ safety is paramount,’’ Abe said. Abe said he hoped the IOC would make a decision early if the Games were to be postponed, because the process would involve a lot of work and should start as soon as possible. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike echoed Abe. “The IOC will fully examine what to do over the next four weeks, and in that process that word [postponement] may be included,” she said.

The International Olympic Committee had said one day ago that postponement of the Olympics was a possibility. Its statement had come after weeks of pressure from athletes and sports associations. People in Tokyo are increasingly convinced the Games won’t happen this summer. “There is no way we can hold it,” 75-year-old Noriko Shuzui told AFP as she shopped in Tokyo’s Ginza district on Monday.”Even if Japan had overcome the virus, if the world hadn’t we would receive no athletes, no spectators. No way we can do it.”

Japan has so far seen more than 1,000 infections and 41 deaths, but it has taken fewer measures to restrict daily life, scaling back but not cancelling a welcome ceremony for the Olympic torch last week.

Still, the news from around the world appears to have convinced people that the Games cannot be held as scheduled, with 69 percent of respondents polled by Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun daily they thought it was now better to postpone the event.

Just 17 percent thought it would be best to hold the Games as planned, with eight percent convinced the Olympics should be cancelled altogether, the weekend poll showed. Shuzui said a postponement seemed necessary under the circumstances. “The first priority now is to fight the new coronavirus. Everyone was looking forward to it, so it would be sad and disappointing,” she said. “But we’ve got to take some measures.”

She had harsh words for organisers and officials who until this weekend had insisted the Games would be able to go ahead as scheduled. “I think it’s nonsense.”

‘Think about people’s safety’

The IOC and Japanese officials have said cancelling the Games is not on the table, with a postponement now seemingly the likeliest option despite posing formidable logistical challenges. “It would be sad if it has to be postponed,” said Yudai Yamamoto, a trading firm employee, who said he was glad that cancellation didn’t appear to be on the table. “I want to see the Games take place at some point,” the 22-year-old said.

Organisers have insisted that preparations were going ahead for the Games to open as scheduled on July 24, but the virus has already hit events from qualifiers to the torch relay.

Despite calls for people to avoid gathering in crowds, tens of thousands of people flocked to see the flame being displayed in northeastern Japan over the weekend, raising questions about whether the relay will be altered over safety concerns.

Naonobu Terashima, a 78-year-old pensioner, told AFP he wanted a decision to be taken based on safety. “I’m sure it was a great deal of effort to bid for and win the Olympics. But... I don’t think we should take the risk of harming people’s health,” he said.