After weeks of pushing for 2020 Tokyo Olympics to be held per schedule Japan PM Shinzo Abe, on Sunday, hinted that the summer Games may need to be postponed if it cannot be held in “complete form.” Abe’s statement of the possibility of ‘postponing the Olympics’ came hours after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that they are considering a postponement of the multi-sport event due to the rising number of deaths and people affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Both Abe and IOC, however, reiterated that cancelling the Games was not an option although a possible delay may be on the cards. Canada, Australia First Two Countries to Pull Out of 2020 Tokyo Olympics Due to Coronavirus Pandemic.

Abe cited the impossibility of hosting Tokyo Olympics 2020 in its ‘complete form’ as a reason for it to be postponed. “If that becomes difficult (hosting a complete Olympic event), we may have no option but to consider postponing the Games,” Abe, who is in his second term as the country’s electoral head, was quoted as telling the parliament by news agency Reuters. The 65-year-old also mentioned that he had conveyed the message to Tokyo Games chief Yoshiro Mori, who had also discussed the same with IOC head Thomas Bach. Tokyo Olympic 2020: Thousands Flock to See Olympic Flame in Japan Despite Coronavirus Fears.

Shinzo Abe Admits Postponing Olympics May Be An Option Amidst Mounting Pressure

Earlier, IOC President Bach had written to the Global Athlete Community to explain the association’s current resolve on the matter, in which he mentioned that the health of everyone involved and containing the virus was the fundamental principle of the Olympic Committee. “Human lives take precedence over everything, including the staging of the Games. The IOC wants to be part of the solution. Therefore we have made it our leading principle to safeguard the health of everyone involved, and to contribute to containing the virus,” he said in the letter.

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The Olympic body had come under heavy criticism and pressure over its reluctance to postpone the Tokyo Olympics despite the devastating effects of COVID-19. The IOC was supported in its motive to go ahead with the Summer Games as per schedule before the sudden turn on Sunday. Meanwhile, the IOC also gave itself a four-week deadline to draw a final decision on the fate of Tokyo Olympics 2020. The Olympics is scheduled to start on July 24 and will run through to August 09.

Hours after the ICO’s declaration of determining the final decision in four weeks’ time, Canada threatened to pull out of the Tokyo Games. In a joint statement, the country’s Olympic and Paralympic committee announced that it will “not be sending its athletes to Tokyo” until the Olympics is postponed by a year.

Australia PM Scott Morrison, on the other, informed the media that travel restrictions imposed by the country is bound to bar its athletes from making any foreign travel. A statement from the country’s Olympic Association also read that athletes have been asked to prepare keeping in mind that the Olympics will be held in 2021.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 23, 2020 12:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).