Olympics to start in July 2021

The postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics have officially been rescheduled for next summer, the International Olympic Committee announced Monday.

The Games, which were pushed back a year last week over growing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, will now run from July 23 to Aug. 8, 2021.

The Paralympic Games will follow from Aug. 24 to Sept. 5.

“I want to thank the International Federations for their unanimous support and the Continental Associations of National Olympic Committees for the great partnership and their support in the consultation process over the last few days,” IOC president Thomas Bach said in a statement. “I would also like to thank the IOC Athletes’ Commission, with whom we have been in constant contact.”

“With this announcement, I am confident that, working together with the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Japanese Government and all our stakeholders, we can master this unprecedented challenge. Humankind currently finds itself in a dark tunnel. These Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 can be a light at the end of this tunnel.”

Even as the coronavirus death toll rose dramatically, the IOC and Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, had been insistent that the Olympics go on as scheduled until last week, when the delay was announced.

All athletes who already qualified for the 2020 Games will reserve their place for the rescheduled event, which is still being called the 2020 Olympics.

Despite the postponement of the Summer Games, the IOC confirmed to the Daily News that the scheduled 2022 Winter Games in Beijing are still planned for that season.