The Japanese authorities have secretly concluded that the Olympic Games in Tokyo, postponed to the summer of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, must be canceled. The Times reported this, citing a senior government source.
The source said that Tokyo is looking for an opportunity to announce the cancellation of the Olympics “without losing face”.
“Nobody wants to be the first to say this, but a consensus has been reached: it’s too difficult. Personally, I think the Olympics won’t take place,” the source said. After the cancellation, he said, Japan will focus on hosting the Tokyo Summer Games in 2032. This is the next Olympics, the organizer of which has not yet been determined.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has refused to cancel the Olympic Games in Tokyo, which are to be held from July 23 to August 8 this year. At the same time, more than 80 percent of Japanese want to postpone or completely cancel the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, postponed to the summer of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fact that the 2020 Summer Olympics has been postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic became known on March 24. The director of the organizing committee of the Games, Haruyuki Takahashi, admitted the possibility of re-postponing the Olympic Games. At the same time, he stressed that it is impossible to completely cancel the Games, as this will deal a huge blow to the economy of Japan and the world.