There has to be a Tokyo Olympics for Simon Biles, the most decorated American gymnast of all time, to compete and come home with more medals.
Photo by Tom Weller/picture alliance via Getty Images
Numerous large public events have been canceled or postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak, including the South by Southwest festivals and conferences and the E3 gaming event. But a decision has yet to be made about the granddaddy global sporting event of 2020, the Tokyo Olympic Games, set for this summer.
Postponed? Canceled? Moved?
"The (International Olympic Committee Executive Board) encourages all athletes to continue to prepare for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020," the IOC said in a March 3 statement, noting that the group will continue to follow the advice of the World Health Organization. A site set up for Olympic athletes suggests they take protective health measures, such as covering coughs and sneezes and washing hands frequently. Several Olympics-related events have been canceled, including an Alpine skiing test event for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
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But what if the coronavirus situation worsens, and the Olympics need to shift? In early March, Haruyuki Takahashi, a member of the organizing committee's executive board, told Reuters that a delay of one or two years would be the "most feasible" option. But Yoshiro Mori, the head of the organizing committee, quickly said the games were still on. "It is our basic stance that we press ahead with preparation for a safe and secure Olympics," Mori told reporters, according to Reuters.
When will a decision be made?
In late February, Canadian Dick Pound, the longest-serving member of the International Olympic Committee, told the Associated Press a decision on what to do about the games could be put off until late May. At that time, Pound said that if the Olympics are affected, the enormous event is more likely to be canceled than postponed or moved elsewhere. But things are changing daily, so Pound's opinion on timing may no longer apply. The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to take place in and around Japan's capitol city from July 24 through Aug. 9, so the clock is ticking on a decision.
How many people would be affected?
The Olympics are huge, both in numbers of people involved, and in billions of dollars spent. More than 11,000 athletes from 206 nations are hoping to compete in 339 events. Many thousands more are planning to work in some part of the games, from food and souvenir vendors to hotel clerks to trainers and coaches. NBC is set to broadcast the games in the US, even offering a dedicated streaming Olympics package for those who want to watch as much as possible, with no ads. And as evidenced by the fact that tickets sold out last July, thousands more are planning to watch the events, whether traveling from across town or across the planet. All of these people's lives will be drastically altered should the games be postponed or canceled.
Has this ever happened before?
Yes. The 1916 Summer Games were canceled due to a little event called World War I. The 1940 and 1944 Games, both winter and summer, were canceled due to World War II. (Japan was the country affected back then, too — the 1940 Games were set for Tokyo and Sapporo.) Other games have been affected by boycotts. By contrast, in 2016, the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, played out as scheduled despite scientists' warnings about the Zika virus.
The next Olympics after Tokyo are the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, followed by the 2024 Paris Summer Games, and then the 2026 Winter Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy.
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