Cycling: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has resisted for a long time. But now President Thomas Bach also had to realize: The 2020 Olympic Games have to be postponed.
2020 Olympic Games postponed to 2021
The world stands still. For months, those involved in all sports have agreed to suspend their competitions. While the European Football Championship was postponed many days ago, the International Olympic Committee has long resisted the postponement of the Summer Games. But now Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has canceled the event. According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, he is said to have communicated this to IOC President Thomas Bach via telephone conference. The Olympic Games should now be held in summer 2021 at the latest.
Many athletes and nations have already canceled
Even if the IOC would have liked to wait a little longer with the cancellation, the organizers ultimately had no other choice. A few days ago, the first athletes and sometimes entire nations canceled their participation. Quite apart from the fact that the corona virus would be further spread by the Olympic Games, the participants feared for equal opportunities.
BDR President Rudolf Scharping:
"The BDR believes that the postponement of the Olympic Games to 2021 is correct. The health of the athletes must be a priority. In addition, under the given circumstances, equal opportunities in competition preparation and qualification were not possible. The decision is initially bitter for all those who have specifically prepared for it, but understandable in view of the risks. There was no alternative.”
IOC Athletes' Commission statement regarding the postponement of the Olympic Games @Tokyo2020.
Read here 👉https://t.co/yaXDgC7znJ#Stay strong #Staysafe #StayHealthy pic.twitter.com/p08HzkxMLO
— Athlete365 (@Athlete365) March 24, 2020