Tokyo 2021 Olympics Will Happen 'Regardless of Pandemic Situation' Says Organizing Committee President

Feb 2, 2021 at 15:54
by Alicia Leggett  
The big goal is achieved Nino Schurter is the olympic winner

Last time we covered the planned 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the Games’ cancellation looked increasingly likely. Now, less than six months out from the scheduled start date, Reuters has reported that the president of the Tokyo 2021 organizing committee is adamant that the Games will proceed as planned “regardless of the pandemic situation.”

At a meeting with Japan’s Sports Research Commission, Tokyo 2020 President Yoshiro Mori said that the organizers should focus on how, not whether, the Olympics will happen this year.

The Japanese government and the International Olympic Committee have also said that cancelling the event is not an option.

At a press conference last week, IOC President Thomas Bach reiterated that the IOC is fully committed to making the Games happen: “We are not losing our time and energy on speculation. We are fully concentrating on the Opening Ceremony on 23 July this year. We are not speculating on whether the Games are taking place. We are working on how the Games will take place.”

Since the postponement of the Olympics, several sports, including mountain biking, have been able to return to competition. Options we have heard for the Olympics to take place include running the Games without spectators, giving Olympic athletes priority vaccines, and implementing strict bubble protocols.

bigquotesIn this we are gaining even more confidence from the effectiveness of the countermeasures which are being applied right now at sports events across the world. We have seen this during the winter season: more than 7,000 events have been organised by the International Federations, with 175,000 COVID tests, and only 0.18 per cent were positive. The competitions could be run, could be organised, and none of the competitions developed into a hotspot or anything like this. We also see many summer sports already back with competitions, with the same results, with the same care for the safety of everybody involved. And this is why we are so, so confident.IOC President Thomas Bach


Japan recently extended its coronavirus state of emergency for another month because of outbreaks at the beginning of January. In the most recent opinion poll by news agency Kyodo, 80% of people living in Japan believe the Olympics should be cancelled or further postponed.

We will keep you updated on the status of the Games as more information becomes available.

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118 Comments
  • 122 9
 ...It will be cancelled when countries refuse to send teams.
  • 25 4
 Agreed...
  • 10 2
 Exactly cant have a event if no competitors show up.
  • 12 12
 People are complaining that schools don't reopen in the US. No teachers feel safe teaching in classrooms = no school.
  • 25 86
flag pistol2ne (Feb 2, 2021 at 17:32) (Below Threshold)
 @suspended-flesh: those teachers unions are getting sued.

It will resolve itself shortly.
  • 22 1
 Soo Japan wins all the golds!
  • 24 55
flag pistol2ne (Feb 2, 2021 at 19:25) (Below Threshold)
 Lol why are people down voting me for just stating a fact that teacher unions are getting sued for holding out of in person learning?

Sorry so many of you don't want to live in reality.
  • 39 5
 @pistol2ne: you are getting downvoted for getting off topic to push agenda, but I think you knew that already.
  • 15 59
flag pistol2ne (Feb 2, 2021 at 19:32) (Below Threshold)
 @RonSauce: Is it off topic though? Suspended flesh said teachers don't feel safe, I said their unions were getting sued by parents that have a much bigger say, that one could reasonably assume parents feel safe sending their kids back to. Kids out number teachers 20 to 1 in this country so that narrative of people being scared is false.

As much as some pinkbike user wants to believe, the Olympics will happen with plenty of countries participating, because they aren't actually scared of covid...
  • 29 2
 @pistol2ne: yes, and your comment and this comment and my last comment are all getting further off topic.
  • 24 1
 I feel sorry for folks in Japan dealing with yet another IOC ClusterF**K. Twenty-five billion dollars (mostly public money) flushed down the toilet for a one-time event that 80% of the locals don't even want to have happen.

I like the idea of the Olympics - but when are the wheels gonna finally fall off this broken system?
  • 4 5
 @RonSauce: Yep, and I just used the first analogy that popped into my head to go along with @davemud:'s comment: no athletes = no Olympics. I am involved with the school dilemma but won't further derail this gold medal choo choo.
  • 1 0
 They should do so.
  • 6 17
flag chrishaugh (Feb 2, 2021 at 23:16) (Below Threshold)
 @RonSauce: what did he say that wasn’t true though?
  • 6 0
 @chrishaugh: Do you recognise the difference between "true" and "on topic"? They are not equal. Also, @RonSauce never said anything @pistol2ne wrote was not true (unless you can point to a specific quote that I missed) so not sure what you are even responding to except your own projections.
  • 7 0
 time for Levy to mask up and claim the gold
  • 2 1
 @suspended-flesh: I'm in school. full in person, with masks of course
  • 2 1
 Dropping a Covid Bomb on their beautiful island...WTF!! Despicable of the IOC...
  • 1 0
 @Supergirl56: I work for a public school district and there are no teachers that will come to teach in-person.
  • 83 1
 The olympics end up draining the economy of the host city and cause a lot of environmental issues. Why don’t they just reuse a neutral facility every 4 years?
  • 137 1
 Because the olympics are in large part a figurative dick size competition between countries.
  • 22 0
 This x1000. There are some great photo essays about all of the abandoned Olympic venues from previous games.
  • 6 0
 @cedrico: dammmmn yes you get it
  • 8 0
 I remember reading an article about the Rio games and how it's left the city. I don't think athletes would give two turtle sh!ts about where it takes place.
  • 22 1
 @cedrico: That's what i love about big dick people, they don't have to compensate by organizing a large event or driving a big truck
  • 20 0
 I agree. Host it in Greece every time.
  • 7 0
 Winter in Antarctica, Summer in Western Sahara
  • 8 0
 @giantwhip: or chosing the name Dick Pound
  • 11 0
 @vondur: That's not such a bad idea. Infrastructure would have a chance to be paid off. That makes it cheaper to host. Greece needs a boost to its economy too. You would have professional workers and systems in place instead of each country winging it. And a permanent course from Marathon to Athens.
  • 2 0
 @Fektor: True - to date only the LA Olympics made a profit - because it already had most of the venues - look at China's - they spent over 40B and only returned a paltry under 4B. Talk about wasting money. All for the govt's "see how rich and modern and cultured we are" egos.
  • 56 6
 Dick is really Pound(ing) this down our throats, eg?
  • 15 0
 There's not much escaping from the Biggus Dickus
  • 2 0
 I came here to read Dick Pound's annoucement. Where are you Dick? Did you stuck somewhere?
  • 29 0
 Take all the bribe money and corruption money in Olympics and vaccinate all attendies and athletes.
  • 3 1
 No DH track this year?
  • 27 7
 Things that are not an option:
-controlling the weather.
-death
-breathing under water
.
.
.
Cancelling the Olympic games :
-DEFINITELY AN OPTION
  • 26 0
 bUt wHaT aB0uT ScUbA DIv1inG???!!111one
  • 8 24
flag Thirty3 (Feb 2, 2021 at 17:35) (Below Threshold)
 You can control the weather. Cloud seeding is an age old practice dating to at least the days of Napoleon. It's been said Napoleon used to load sulfur into the cannons to shoot in the sky to cause massive amounts of rain to fall therefore bogging down the enemy.
  • 19 3
 napolean shot asparagus from his cannon to prove the earth was flat too
  • 7 2
 @stainerdome: dont worry I'm sure @Thirty3 believe the earth is flat.
  • 10 12
 Its frustrating that you people are so ignorant of such topics. Think for a second about the advancements in medical, aerospace and AI technologies and you think Boeing, Lockheed, or the military (Owning The Weather 2025) haven't looked into weather control? There is a neat stuff out there beyond your short-sightedness
  • 7 1
 @Thirty3: Dunno why you're being down voted, weather control is definitely a real thing.
  • 2 0
 @Thirty3: Beijing Olympics they controlled the weather. They did news articles about it not even top secret
  • 3 0
 @Thirty3: so how do you explain drought in Australia and California during to last wildfire seasons? I'm sure they could've use some rain there.
  • 3 4
 @Thirty3: oh my god buddy, get a LIFE! I used this as an example! Are YOU personally able to control the weather?? No, youre not and clearly you missed the point ( insert facepalm emoji) I couldnt care less if you think we’re ignorants and I would rather be an ignorant fool on such topic than a condescending NERD....Seriously, get a life.
  • 1 5
flag Thirty3 (Feb 3, 2021 at 10:04) (Below Threshold)
 @neroleeloo: You mad bro? I
  • 2 1
 @Thirty3: not even the slightest...shocked tho
  • 19 1
 Dick Pound is in a sticky situation
  • 5 1
 is it a hard one to get out of
  • 12 1
 He's in deep
  • 5 0
 Pull out! Pull out! They call
  • 17 0
 I'm sure their comments will age just beautifully.
  • 11 0
 This is gonna age like milk
  • 10 3
 I don't think holding the Olympics in 2021 is the responsible thing to do, but I am afraid there is too much money at stake for people to make the right decision. Hopefully countries will decide to not send their athletes if it isn't safe to do so.
  • 2 10
flag chrishaugh (Feb 2, 2021 at 23:14) (Below Threshold)
 “Safe” ????
  • 9 0
 I will not watch again for the 30th year in the row regardless of the pandemic situation.
  • 6 0
 The said they won't do on 2022. Why not ? Winter and summer used to always be on same schedule. Push it one more year. Makes sense and the world will be waiting for a party.
  • 8 0
 Ronald Mcdonald, Coca-Cola and underground Pharma gotta make bank
  • 13 8
 The last time a president overpromised / underdelivered it didn't work out so well. ;-)

But Thomas has got this . . . right?
  • 9 41
flag Logan760 (Feb 2, 2021 at 18:17) (Below Threshold)
 Creepy joe comes to mind.
  • 5 9
flag DHhack (Feb 2, 2021 at 18:42) (Below Threshold)
 @Logan760: he didn’t promise much...
  • 3 4
 @Logan760: not where I was going with it.
  • 5 0
 Came here for the Dick Pound comments, wasnt disappointed. The gift that keeps on giving.
  • 6 2
 Canceled ? Not important for me. It's just a competition for money and Very bad for the co2 planet.
  • 4 0
 Dick Pound isn't their president? Must be their King then
  • 4 0
 If its not announced by dick pound I dont believe it
  • 3 0
 Amen
  • 3 1
 I say do it. If anyone can pull this off is a ultra organized country like Japan. The athletes want to do it,and we want to watch it on TV.
  • 1 0
 Heard a headline on't radio yesterday,Mori saying the Olympics will be postponed an happen in 2022... Today I read this... Yay news media
  • 2 0
 Pretty sure they said this last time too.
  • 1 1
 People should not be allowed to travel out of their own country anyway global pandemic?
  • 2 0
 Johnson Relief
  • 2 1
 13.4 Billion reason why the games must go on......
  • 1 0
 Might not be the safest plan but definitely the most entertaining
  • 2 2
 In this thread: Dick Pound lol, lack of sympathy for IOC, sympathy for athletes, conspiracy nuts talking about COVID hoax
  • 1 0
 *Mr.Crabs voice* MONEY MONEY MONEEEYYY
  • 1 0
 I have read the exact opposite of this in a few places.
  • 1 0
 LOL
  • 1 0
 Another cancelled race
  • 1 0
 Bold strategy Cotton
  • 1 0
 Another stubborn idiot
  • 1 1
 That's awesome!!!!
  • 2 2
 Get the games going!
  • 1 2
 Good. Enough is enough. Time to move on.
  • 1 1
 No one lives forever!
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