Tokyo Olympics Officially Postponed Until 2021 Due to Coronavirus Pandemic

‘The Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope during these troubled times’

In the most significant sports-event postponement to date as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be postponed to a date “beyond 2020 but no later than summer 2021.” International Olympics Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach and Prime Minister of Japan Abe Shinzo announced Tuesday morning that the Games must be rescheduled “to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games, and the international community.”

The Olympic flame will stay in Japan, and the Games will keep the name Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.

In the present circumstances and based on the information provided by the WHO today, 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.”

Bach and Shinzo were joined by Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee President Mori Yoshiro; Olympic Minister Hashimoto Seiko; Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko; IOC Coordination Commission Chair John Coates; IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper; and IOC Olympic Games Executive Director Christophe Dubi.

Bach and Abe expressed their shared concern about the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, what it is doing to people’s lives, and the significant impact it is having on the athletes’ preparations for the Games. The two leaders also praised the work of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee and noted Japan’s progress in the fight against COVID-19.

CLICK HERE to read the full statement from the IOC and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee.

Stay tuned to SportsVideo.org for continuing coverage of this developing story.