Grainger relief at Olympics delay
Dame Katherine Grainger last night expressed her relief after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games were both postponed for a year. However, Britain’s most decorated female Olympian of all time (left) believes athletes will face massive mental adjustments after the summer showpiece was pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic. The event, which was due to begin on July 24, will take place ‘no later than summer 2021’ after Japan’s Prime minister Shinzo abe reached an agreement with International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach. and Grainger, chair of UK Sport, believes the right decision has been made to protect the safety of everyone involved during the current global crisis. ‘It’s mixed emotions,’ said the Scot. ‘Happy is not the word I would use. There’s a sense of relief that there is clarity because, increasingly, there was a feeling that you couldn’t imagine how the Olympics or Paralympics could go ahead in a matter of three or four months’ time. ‘The announcement had to be
made — and it to be made soon from the IOC and Japan. It’s a huge thing to move the Games. It’s not been moved before other than during war time. ‘It’s really, really rare and unheard of in peacetime. It’s nothing that any of us have experience before. ‘I can see why there was a huge delay to reach the decision — so many things needed to be looked into. But increasingly it’s about the peace of mind for so many people involved. ‘And it’s all about safety. Athletes had to still prepare assuming it was going ahead until they heard otherwise.
People couldn’t train together, gyms were closed, they couldn’t access facilities and they were taking risks if they tried. ‘It was the right decision to make. It now creates another whole host of issues and question marks. But that’s a better position to be in than if the Games were happening in the first place.’ The IOC had given itself a four-week deadline to consider delaying the Games — but that prompted a backlash from athletes and committees who were desperate for a quicker decision. Britain, Canada and Australia had warned they would not send teams to Japan this summer.
Grainger believes delaying the Games, which will still be called Tokyo 2020 despite taking place in 2021, will benefit some athletes — but accepts new challenges will present themselves for others. ‘There will be a lot of reactions,’ said the 44-year-old. ‘The first will be relief that a decision has been made. All the athletes I’ve spoken to, especially in the last week or two, knew something would happen but they just wanted to know what it would be. We all want to know what we are dealing with. ‘Now that athletes know the Games are not happening, everyone will handle it quite differently. ‘Building up to an Olympics, this is the last step. We’re on the last weeks and months in terms of the run-in. It’s a huge four-year build up and you can now see the end point. ‘To have that shifted by a year — it feels like more than a year — will be a big adjustment mentally to say: “I’ve now got to go again”. ‘For some athletes, they’ll be honest and say: “I might be in a better place”. Some who are earlier in their career and were dealing with an injury, a year’s break could be a positive message.’