Tokyo 2020 Olympics Games Officially Postponed Until 2021

After weeks of speculation that the Olympic Games could be delayed, the International Olympic Committee officially has postponed the Tokyo Olympic games until 2021 due to the coronavirus (CONVID-19) pandemic.

The IOC came to the decision after speaking the Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and local organizers after the local organizers said that the torch relay of the Olympic Flame would go as planned on Thursday. Those plans changed and the relay was delayed. The president of the organizing committee Yoshiro Mori said that “the Flame will be stored and displayed in Fukushima.” According to the IOC, the Games will not be held any later than summer 2021.

USOPC issued a formal statement on Monday night officially requesting that the IOC postpone the Olympic Games scheduled for July after the committee surveyed its 1,780 athletes. That came after both Canada and Australia said they would not be sending athletes to the 2020 Games in Tokyo. With the CDC placing restrictions on large gatherings and the virus continuing to spread worldwide, speculation over a possible delay or outright cancellation of the Games had begun picking up steam in recent weeks.

The Olympics has never been postponed, only canceled in wartime. However, The IOC and Tokyo organizers said they hope the decision to postpone will help the world heal from the pandemic.

“In the present circumstances and based on the information provided by the WHO today, the IOC President Thomas Bach and the Prime Minister of Japan have concluded that the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games and the international community,” the IOC said in a statement. “The leaders agreed that the Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope to the world during these troubled times and that the Olympic flame could become the light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present. Therefore, it was agreed that the Olympic flame will stay in Japan. It was also agreed that the Games will keep the name Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.”