The Tokyo Olympic Games that were postponed will be continued next year ‘with or without COVID’ as said by the vice-president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), John Coates on Monday.
He also stated that the Olympics will start on July 23 next year. Before this, the Tokyo Olympics originally scheduled to start in July 2020 but were postponed due to COVID-19.
“It will take place with or without COVID. The Games will start on July 23 next year,” he said.
“The Games were going to be, their theme, the Reconstruction Games after the devastation of the tsunami,” Coates added, referring to the 2011 catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
“Now very much these will be the Games that conquered COVID, the light at the end of the tunnel.” continued Coates.
Tokyo 2020 chief executive, Toshiro Muto said in July that the Olympics will be held with a limited audience. But, they wanted to avoid the possibility of having no spectators at all.
Muto added that the games could potentially simplify its opening and closing ceremonies, as well as reduce the number of staff and representatives from each country.
As reported by BBC, Muto also said the vaccine was not a prerequisite for the Olympics, although health experts had questioned whether the Games could be held without the vaccine.
“If a vaccine is ready, that will be a benefit, but we’re not saying we can’t hold the event without it – it’s not a precondition,” he said.
Source: BBC, South China Morning Post