JAPAN, IOC DENY OLYMPICS TO BE CANCELLED

Japan and the IOC stood firm on Friday on their commitment to host the Tokyo Olympics this year and denied a report of a possible cancellation, although the pledge looks unlikely to ease public concern about holding the event during a pandemic. Though much of Japan is under a state of emergency due to a third wave of COVID-19 infections, Tokyo Olympic organizers have vowed to press ahead with the rescheduled Games, due to open on July 23 after being postponed for a year because of the coronavirus. A government spokesman said there was “no truth” to a report in Britain’s Times newspaper that the government had privately concluded the Games would have to be cancelled. The Times of London, citing an unidentified senior member of Japan’s ruling coalition, said the government’s focus was now on securing the Games for Tokyo in the next available year, 2032. Japan Olympic Committee head Yasuhiro Yamashita told Reuters the report was “a fabrication” and added in an interview: “It’s wrong and it’s ridiculous even having to comment on this.”