JOIN USThe International Olympic Committee (IOC) has taken the right decision to postpone the summer Olympics, which was scheduled to begin in Tokyo in July. It will now be held in July 2021. The decision was taken by the IOC after consultations with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. It is an unprecedented decision, but the agreement to put off the event could not be avoided in view of the spreading coronavirus threat. The IOC and the Abe government were unwilling till last week to consider postponement. But this was before the magnitude and spread of the pandemic became fully known. Even now the full extent of the threat is only being speculated and so it would have been wrong and unwise to continue preparations for it.
Japan itself has seen many cases of Covid-19 and is still taking measures to contain it. Many athletes and sports federations have told the IOC that they would not be unable to participate in the Games even if the virus threat diminishes by July. The world will be under the cloud of the virus threat for many more weeks even if active transmission stops before July. Some countries had already declared that they would not send their athletes to Tokyo. Many athletes who were to take part in the Games had stopped training because of the lockout in their countries. The issue is not just about the participation of athletes. The world’s biggest sports event will attract tens of thousands of spectators, officials and other supporting staff, and allowing such a large congregation to take place is unthinkable in these times.
Japan has invested much in the Olympics, financially and otherwise. The country had expected it to be an occasion for reassertion of its place in the world. Abe had a personal stake in it, as he is now the country’s longest serving prime minister and is set to complete his term next year. The country will take a financial hit from the postponement, but Japan is better placed than many other countries to cope with it. The losses can be made up later, and other positives of hosting the Games will not go away. There is an additional advantage also. The Olympics symbolises the human spirit that always strives to stretch physical and mental boundaries by pushing the limits. When it is held, whenever it is, it will celebrate the victory of the human will over one of the deadliest challenges it has experienced in living memory. The Olympics will provide the best victory stand to declare it from.