International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach reaffirmed that there will be successful and safe delivery of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, starting on 23 July with the Olympic Games and 24 August with the Paralympic Games.”
Thomas Bach explained the reasons for which IOC is confident about the Olympics Games this summer. “In the last couple of days, we had consultation calls with the International Federations and the National Olympic Committees, also getting reports from the athlete representatives. We could experience there today, again, that all of them are fully united and committed; all 206 National Olympic Committees, all the International Federations and the athletes are standing behind these Olympic Games. We see the same commitment on the Japanese side with the Japanese government, the Organising Committee and the Japanese Olympic Committee.”
IOC knows the complexity in arranging a postponed Olympics Games and therefore taking the process as a learning curve. The IOC President said, “We are fighting this fight for, and like, Olympic athletes. This means with full determination, with a will to win, with hard work every day, and with all the physical and mental strength we have.”
On one hand when Thomas Bach stated that they are not concentrating on any speculation of cancellation of the Summer Olympics, on the other hand, the first test event of 2021 Tokyo Olympics will be postponed due to travel restrictions under Japan’s coronavirus state of emergency.
The Artistic Swimming test event – which will double as the sport’s final qualifier for the Games was scheduled to be held at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre from March 4 to 7. But it will now take place in either April or May.
The International Swimming Federation (FINA) and Japan Swimming Federation (JASF) have determined travel restrictions on foreign nationals coming into Japan. Athletes coming to Japan to prepare for the coronavirus-postponed 2020 Games had been exempt from the entry ban, but the government revoked the privilege earlier in January. Tokyo and other parts of the country are under a state of emergency until at least February 7, 2021.
