2021 Tokyo Olympics will be 'celebration of humanity' once coronavirus pandemic has passed, says Thomas Bach

Tom Dutton25 March 2020

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach hopes the postponed Tokyo Games will be a "celebration of humanity" once the world has come through the coronavirus pandemic.

The Olympics and Paralympics were scheduled to go ahead in Japan this summer before Tokyo 2020 organisers and the Japanese government confirmed on Tuesday their plans to push both events into 2021.

Pressure from national Olympic committees and international sports federations to postpone had mounted on a daily basis as the Covid-19 outbreak spread.

Opting for a postponement rather than cancellation all together means the cost implications for the IOC and the local organisers will be significant, but manageable.

Postponed: The Olympics will now take place 'no later than summer 2021'
PA

On Tuesday evening, IOC president Bach posted a video on the organisation's media channels, offering hope for a brighter tomorrow and the continuation of the Olympic ideal, albeit delayed.

"We will all be able to celebrate the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, even if it is only in 2021. You can be sure you can make your Olympic dream coming true," Bach said.

"There is a lot of uncertainty remaining for the entire humanity. We all are together in a very dark tunnel, we do not know how long this tunnel is and we do not know what is happening tomorrow.

"But we want this Olympic flame to be a light at the end of the tunnel. This is why we will work hard now to undertake this extremely challenging task of postponing the Games and of organising a postponed Games, which never happened before.

"We have no blueprint for this and it will need the effort of everyone and the contribution of all to make this happen because the Olympics is the most complex event on this planet.

"We want to provide you with the best conditions and the most safe environment for the Games.

"Imagine what this could mean for all of us - these Olympic Games could then finally be the celebration of humanity after having overcome the unprecedented crisis of the coronavirus.

"It could be a true celebration of all of us, a true demonstration of the Olympic spirit, what unites us all and where we have our full commitment behind."

The decision was welcomed by international federations and national Olympic committees across the world, many of whom, the British Olympic Association included, had been prepared to stand down their athletes from training anyway for their own safety had the IOC not acted.

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BOA chief executive Andy Anson said Team GB's preparation's had been "compromised irreparably" by social distancing measures in the UK, which were further tightened on Monday night, and he said the IOC's decision was the right one.

"The Olympic Games is a symbol of hope for us all and we are sure that we will be in Tokyo at the right and appropriate time as the world re-emerges from this dark period," he said.

Funding for sports governing bodies from the Exchequer and the National Lottery is tied into Olympic cycles, and in the normal run of things a new UK Sport funding cycle would begin from the start of April 2021.

The decision to postpone means a workaround will be needed, which UK Sport will discuss in the coming weeks and months with the summer Olympic and Paralympic sports bodies.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, British Athletics confirmed the suspension of all athletics activity within the UK had been extended to May 31.

This season's European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup semi-finals and finals were postponed and Premier League Darts has announced that three more nights of action - in Manchester, Berlin and Birmingham - have been postponed

'Celebration of humanity': IOC president Thomas Bach has called for a positive outlook
AFP via Getty Images

Members of McLaren staff quarantined in Australia are set to arrive back home within the next 48 hours having spent a fortnight in self-isolation in Melbourne after one of their colleagues contracted coronavirus.

League One Portsmouth announced a fifth player had tested positive for coronavirus, with Ross McCrorie joining James Bolton, Andy Cannon, Haji Mnoga and Sean Raggett.

The Rugby Football League, meanwhile, confirmed there will be no resumption of fixtures in the foreseeable future, having imposed a three-week shutdown from March 16 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

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